UN peacekeeping force urges Lebanon’s Hezbollah, Israel to halt hostilities

By Wassim Saifuldine

BEIRUT (AA) - The UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) called on Israel and the Lebanese group Hezbollah on Tuesday to cease hostilities to prevent further escalation along the Lebanese-Israeli border.

In a statement, UNIFIL said a “concerning shift” was reported in exchanges of cross-border fire between Israel and Hezbollah.

“This conflict has already claimed too many lives and caused significant damage to houses and public infrastructure,” the peacekeeping force said.

“It has jeopardized the livelihoods and changed the lives of tens of thousands of civilians on both sides of the Blue Line. Yet we now see an expansion and intensification of strikes,” it added.

UNIFIL urged all parties to halt hostilities “to prevent further escalation and leave space for a political and diplomatic solution that can bring back stability and ensure the safety of the people in this region.”

Tension has flared along the border between Lebanon and Israel amid intermittent exchanges of fire between Israeli forces and Hezbollah, in the deadliest clashes since the two sides fought a full-scale war in 2006.

The border tension comes amid an Israeli military offensive in the Gaza Strip that has killed more than 29,900 people following a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas on Oct. 7 last year.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar in Ankara