UN Peacekeepers Accuse Israel of Building Walls Inside Lebanon; Israel Denies Crossing Blue Line

UN Peacekeepers Accuse Israel of Building Walls Inside Lebanon; Israel Denies Crossing Blue Line
——————————-
The United Nations peacekeeping mission in Lebanon (UNIFIL) said Friday that Israeli forces have constructed concrete barriers inside Lebanese territory near the UN-demarcated Blue Line, a claim Israel firmly rejected, Arab News reported.

In a statement, UNIFIL said peacekeepers surveyed a T-wall erected by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) southwest of Yaroun in October and confirmed that it extended beyond the Blue Line, blocking more than 4,000 square meters of Lebanese land. A second survey in November found another section of wall southeast of Yaroun also crossing the line.

Israel denied the allegation, telling AFP that the structure is part of a broader border-fortification project launched in 2022 and expanded after recent clashes. The military insisted that “the wall does not cross the Blue Line.”

UNIFIL said the structures constitute violations of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which ended the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war, and breach Lebanon’s sovereignty. Although Israel was required to withdraw fully from southern Lebanon under a truce reached last November, UNIFIL reports it continues to maintain positions in five locations it considers strategic.

The mission said it has asked Israel to remove the walls and reiterated its call for the IDF to respect the Blue Line along its entire length.