00:00Regarding the Iran war, Pope Leo has repeated appeals for peace and dialogue.
00:05For now, in vain.
00:07Indeed, peace prospects are not looking good.
00:10The situation remains tense, especially in Lebanon.
00:13Israel and the pro-Iranian Hezbollah keep attacking each other.
00:17And over the weekend, Iran has issued an evacuation warning
00:21to all residents in northern Israel to immediately leave.
00:25To discuss the situation further, let's bring in Hervé Lecoq now.
00:29He is the deputy head of the United Nations Peacekeeping Mission in Lebanon, UNIFIL.
00:35Good morning, sir. Thanks for coming on the show.
00:38Good morning, Stefan. Thanks for having me.
00:41So I got to ask you this first.
00:43UNIFIL has been in southern Lebanon for nearly five decades.
00:47Yet the area has repeatedly become a battlefield.
00:50If your mission's core purpose is to help maintain stability,
00:55how do you respond to critics who say UNIFIL has failed?
01:01Well, it's very important to understand what the mandate of UNIFIL was.
01:06It was established in 1978 to monitor the situation at that time.
01:14The situation has drastically changed as UNIFIL has changed.
01:18The main change was in 2006 during the Israel-Lebanon war,
01:23after which the Security Council decided to actually really strengthen UNIFIL,
01:29but to keep a mandate of observing, supporting the parties,
01:35implement the resolution that the Security Council itself had adopted.
01:39The resolution, the implementation of the resolution, disarmament from Hezbollah,
01:46withdrawal of Israel from the Lebanese territory,
01:49strengthening of the state authority of Lebanon and respect for territorial integrity,
01:55was the responsibility of the party, of the parties.
01:59UNIFIL was there to support that process.
02:01So, both Israel and Hezbollah have accused UNIFIL at various times of not doing enough.
02:07Now, when both sides are unhappy, does that prove your neutrality,
02:11or does it suggest the mission lacks real influence on the ground?
02:17Well, I think we are here to support the political process, most and for all,
02:21and UNIFIL is not in charge of that political process.
02:24Right now, it's the U.S. that lead the negotiations between Israel and Lebanon,
02:31and we are here to support that as soon as an agreement will be found.
02:36There was already a cessation of hostilities agreement found in November 24.
02:42We have supported this, in particular, the redeployment of the Lebanese armed forces to the south,
02:49verifying that Hezbollah advocated the south,
02:52and helping the Lebanese armed forces to clear the south of weapons
02:58that were not under the control of the state.
03:00So, we are here to support a process, but when the process fails,
03:05then it is not for UNIFIL to substitute itself to the parties
03:10and force an agreement that the parties have to implement.
03:17And finally, give us your sense of serious peace prospects.
03:22Are Israel and Hezbollah ready to stop their attacks?
03:27I think it's very difficult to see now a change within a few weeks.
03:34There is always the chance that the political process,
03:39the political will of the parties will change things on the ground.
03:42I think we see this under the U.S. negotiation
03:46that are currently ongoing in Washington,
03:49but it's a very complicated process.
03:53It's been going on, as you pointed out, for many decades.
03:58It's entangled with the regional situation that you pointed out
04:01that has, again, yesterday demonstrated that the solution is not there.
04:08It is linked with a long history,
04:12internal difficulties within Lebanon,
04:15between the government, state authority,
04:18and an armed group Hezbollah that does not abide by it.
04:23So, it's a very complicated process.
04:25At the same time, the components of a settlement are known.
04:30They have been set out by the Security Council in 2006,
04:35and the only way to move forward
04:38is to apply that resolution 1701 from the Security Council.
04:43All right.
04:44To go for peace.
04:45All right.
04:46Harvey Lecoq, Deputy Head of the United Nations Peacekeeping Mission in Lebanon.
04:50Thank you for your time this morning.
04:51Appreciate it.
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