ANKARA, June 27 (Bernama-Anadolu) -- Lebanon announced on Friday that it has formally requested the renewal of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) for another year beginning on August 31, Anadolu Ajansi reported.
The Foreign Ministry said in a statement that the request was submitted in accordance with a decision made by the Lebanese Cabinet on May 14, 2025.
A letter was sent to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres through Lebanon's permanent mission to the UN in New York, it added.
It confirmed that Lebanon is “committed to the presence of UNIFIL and to continuing cooperation with the force deployed in the country’s south under UN Security Council Resolution 1701.”
The ministry also emphasised Lebanon’s demand that “Israel withdraw from all Lebanese territory it continues to occupy and cease its ongoing violations of Lebanese sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
UNIFIL has operated in southern Lebanon since 1978 and was significantly reinforced after the 2006 war between Hezbollah and Israel. Its current mandate expires on August 31, 2025, unless renewed by the UN Security Council.
Israeli forces have conducted near-daily attacks in southern Lebanon, claiming to target the Lebanese group Hezbollah’s activities despite a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon that was reached last November.
The truce ended months of cross-border warfare between Israel and Hezbollah, which escalated into a full-scale conflict in September.
Lebanese authorities have reported nearly 3,000 Israeli violations of the truce, including the deaths of at least 208 people and injuries to more than 500, since the agreement was signed.
Under the ceasefire deal, Israel was supposed to fully withdraw from southern Lebanon by Jan 26, but the deadline was extended to Feb 18 after Tel Aviv refused to comply. Israel still maintains a military presence at five border outposts.
-- BERNAMA-ANADOLU
