Israel must retreat from northern Ghajar, Lebanon tells UNIFIL

Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati and caretaker Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib on Monday met in Beirut with UNIFIL chief Maj. Gen. Aroldo Lázaro Sáenz amid tensions with Israel on the southern border.

“We discussed the security situations in the South and they relayed to us the Israeli side’s demand that the tent (that Israel says Hezbollah erected in Israeli territory) be removed. Our response was that we want them to retreat from northern Ghajar, which is considered Lebanese territory,” Bou Habib said after the talks.

“From our side, we have recorded around 18 Israeli violations of the border,” he added.

As for U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701 and the looming renewal of UNIFIL’s mandate, Bou Habib said: “The U.N. secretary general’s report will be discussed on July 20 and UNIFIL’s mandate will be extended in the last week of August.”