Portolano Voices Fear over Regional Developments, Says Situation in South under Control

UNIFIL Commander Maj. Gen. Luciano Portolano stressed on Tuesday that joint efforts between the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon and the Lebanese army aim at defusing tensions and guaranteeing stability in the South.

“No doubt the regional developments remind us of the challenges that the UNIFIL and the Lebanese Armed Forces continuously face to maintain stability in its area of operations,” Portolano said in an interview with the state-run National News Agency.

The UNIFIL commander expressed fear over the recent incident in the Golan Heights, stressing that peacekeepers are keen to prevent any escalation along the Blue Line.

“Our joint efforts is to defuse tension and guarantee the stability of the situation that should remain under control.”

Portolano said that the UNIFIL increased patrols in coordination with the LAF, lauding the support of the Lebanese state to the international peacekeepers to enable it to preserve peace and security in the South.

“Stability depends on several important factors and abiding by the U.N. Security Council resolution 1701 to keep peace,” he added, noting that the UNIFIL is maintaining close contact with the rival parties to prevent any escalation.

On January 18, Israel carried out an airstrike in Syria's Quneitra, targeting a convoy for Hizbullah.

A high-ranking Iranian military official, a prominent Hizbullah member and five other fighters were killed in the raid.

Israel and Hizbullah are bitter enemies and fought a bloody month-long war in the summer of 2006.

Among the dead in the airstrike was Jihad Mughniyeh, the son of Imad Mughniyeh — a top Hizbullah operative who was assassinated in 2008 in Damascus in a bombing that the party blamed on Israel.

Since Syria's civil war began in March 2011, Israel has reportedly carried out several airstrikes in Syria that have targeted sophisticated weapons systems, including Russian-made anti-aircraft missiles and Iranian-made missiles, believed to be destined for Hizbullah.

H.K.

M.T.