Plumbly Calls for Calm after Israeli Raid on Hizbullah Post
United Nations Special Coordinator for Lebanon Derek Plumbly urged on Wednesday Lebanon and Israel to exercise restraint after an Israeli air raid two days earlier on one Hizbullah positions in Lebanon.
“I don't have any direct information about the matter,” Plumbly told reporters after talks with Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil at the Bustros Palace.
He pointed out that the United Nations encourage all concerned parties to “avoid anything which could lead to an escalation or disturb the calm which currently prevails as a result of resolution 1701.”
On Monday night, "two Israeli raids hit a Hizbullah target on the border of Lebanon and Syria," a Lebanese security source told Agence France Presse.
Hizbullah confirmed on Wednesday the report.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday that Israel was doing all that was "necessary" to ensure its security.
"We will not say what we're doing or what we're not doing" to maintain Israel's security, he added.
The diplomat described the meeting with Bassil as “extremely good.”
“We discussed the upcoming meeting in Paris and means to encourage, stimulate and highlight the need for yet more support … for Lebanon and for host communities who are receiving refugees,” Plumbly.
The International Support Group on Lebanon's meeting in Paris set for March 5 and 6.
The support group was inaugurated in New York in September 2013, on the sidelines of the 68th session of the General Assembly. It undertook to work together to mobilize support for the sovereignty and state institutions of Lebanon and to highlight and promote efforts to assist the country where it was most affected by the Syrian crisis, including in respect of strengthening the capacity of the Lebanese army, assistance to refugees, and structural and financial support to the government.
The Paris meeting will focus on humanitarian aid to help improve the situation of displaced Syrians in Lebanon, boosting the capabilities of the Lebanese army and tackling Lebanon's economy.
The number of Syrian refugees in Lebanon had surged to around 900,000 according to the United Nations' refugee agency (UNHCR) as Lebanon has been facing difficulties in coping with their burden.
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