Can UN Resolution 1701 help end the fight between Hezbollah and Israel? – DW – October 4, 2024

Many politicians and diplomats have said that the only solution to the current conflict between Hezbollah and Israel that can bring peace and security to both Israel and Lebanon must be political. Part of such a solution could well be a resolution passed by the United Nations Security Council just over 18 years ago, they say.

“The only way forward will be a political deal,” Randa Slim, director of the conflict resolution program at the Middle East Institute in Washington, said this week. “What’s what? [Resolution] “1701 – perhaps a stronger, more committed 1701 with more enforcement mechanisms – is all about it,” she argued.

There is a lot of criticism of Resolution 1701 todayshe admitted. But as Slim pointed out during an online panel on Thursday, until recently the deal had actually brought 17 years of relative calm to the Lebanese-Israeli border area.

What is Resolution 1701?

Resolution 1701The agreement, passed unanimously by U.N. Security Council members in August 2006, was widely seen as ending a brief but brutal standoff between the Lebanese group's armed wing, Hezbollah, and the Israeli military.

The 2006 conflict began in mid-July of that year when Hezbollah fighters invaded Israel and kidnapped two Israeli soldiers near the border. Another eight Israeli soldiers were killed in the operation.

There had been skirmishes between the two opponents here for a long time. But after Hezbollah kidnapped its soldiers in 2006, Israel began a campaign of airstrikes in Lebanon, including Beirut. Israeli troops also invaded.

The Israeli government blamed the Lebanese government for Hezbollah's actions, but Lebanese officials said they had nothing to do with it and appealed to the United Nations Security Council to intervene.

On August 11, 2006, the UN Security Council called for a “complete cessation of hostilities.” Both Hezbollah and Israel then agreed to a ceasefire under the terms of Resolution 1701.

What does Resolution 1701 say?

The main point of the United Nations Security Council resolution was to create a situation in which Hezbollah and the Israeli military would not stare at each other across the border, and it stipulated that both sides would adopt new rules in a zone between the Litani Rover and the Blue Line should respect. The latter is a “transition border” drawn by the United Nations after earlier fighting and Israel’s occupation of southern Lebanon.

This zone should be controlled exclusively by the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) together with the Lebanese Army.

Resolution 1701 also stipulated that the Lebanese state and its own military should be the sole armed group in Lebanon and that Hezbollah should disarm.

However, Resolution 1701 was passed under a specific UN Security Council statute, meaning that none of these new rules could actually be enforced militarily. Ensuring that the rules of Resolution 1701 were adhered to required the cooperation of all those involved.

Did Resolution 1701 work?

There have been several violations of Resolution 1701 over the years, with both sides accusing the other of being responsible for all the problems.

For example, the shootings began in 2010 when trees claimed by the Lebanese were felled by Israelis. In 2018 at a UN Security Council briefingIsrael accused Hezbollah of digging tunnels under the Blue Line through which it could potentially launch attacks. At the same press conference, the Lebanese government complained that Israel violates Resolution 1701 on an almost daily basis and that these violations, including flights across Lebanese borders, account for about 1,800 incidents annually.

In 2023, Hezbollah accused Israel of trying to annex more land in the area by building a security barrier. To protest, locals demonstrated and Hezbollah set up a tent nearby. This was seen as a provocation by the Israeli side.

Despite all this, however, most observers say that Resolution 1701 was comparatively effective overall and the ceasefire it supported was largely held until last year.

Caught in the middle

UNIFIL, which has around 10,000 troops, including a maritime task force, and costs about $500 million (453 million euros) annually, is in the middle, as are the Lebanese armed forces.

UNIFIL's mission is to enforce the rules of Resolution 1701 and to provide a channel of communication between the Israeli and Lebanese armies. Observers say UNIFIL's role in facilitating communications has been a success. However, UNIFIL is not responsible for disarming Hezbollah nor is it intended to communicate with the group.

UNIFIL “was, within its narrow confines, a versatile and effective conflict management tool,” wrote Thanassis Cambanis, director of the think tank Century International, in a 2018 report. However, “despite their successes, both Israel and Hezbollah regularly publicly attack UNIFIL’s legitimacy.”

For example, Israel says UNIFIL is ineffective and should be strengthened so it can disarm Hezbollah, while Hezbollah claims UNIFIL is spying for Israel.

As for the Lebanese military, the local army is not as strong as Hezbollah, which critics accuse it of being to have only a symbolic presence in the south.

As fighting on the border increased this week, with the Israeli army trying to enter Lebanon and Hezbollah trying to stop them from doing so, UNIFIL reported that Israel had asked them to withdraw from some of their positions in the buffer zone.

According to UNIFIL, the organization now patrols “a battlefront” rather than a border Washington PostHe refused to move. Israel has said Hezbollah also uses UNIFIL as “human shields.”

Edited by: Michaela Cavanagh

Israel promises to restore the buffer zone in southern Lebanon

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