A Lebanese official has denied reports in Israeli media claiming that Israel and the United States have agreed to end the mandate of UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon.
“This is not serious. We have sources in Washington who completely denied it,” the official told The National.
A US State Department spokesman told The National in New York the reports were "not accurate".
The UN Security Council is expected to vote in August on a draft resolution to extend the mandate of the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (Unifil) – a 10,000-strong peacekeeping force posted in southern areas bordering Israel.
The Jerusalem Post, a conservative Israeli daily newspaper, reported on Sunday that the US administration has decided not to renew Unifil’s mandate, and that Israel “did not try to convince them otherwise”.
“I don’t know where these reports are coming from, but they won’t lead anywhere. The presence of Unifil is a necessity for everyone,” the Lebanese source added. The official said the renewal process had already begun at the request of Lebanese authorities and was expected to proceed smoothly.
The decision to extend Unifil's mandate, which is taken annually, is made by the UN Security Council rather than individual countries. The council consists of 15 members; five permanent – the US, UK, France, China and Russia – and 10 rotating.
Unifil peacekeepers were deployed in 1978 after Israel invaded south Lebanon, and the force is tasked with monitoring violations from both sides of the border. Its area of operations extends from the Blue Line – the UN-delineated border between Lebanon and Israel – to the Litani River, about 30km from the border.
UN deputy spokesman Farhan Haq said the mandate was in the hands of the Security Council. But he praised the work that Unifil has done since the 1970s as "speaking for itself".
The force "has been a very crucial component to the safety and the stability of southern Lebanon", he said. "The unrest and activity across the blue line continues even now, so the situation has not returned to a position of stability."
Unifil's annual budget is around $500 million, which is provided by contributions from UN member states. Contributions to UN peacekeeping missions are based on a formula, which takes into account “relative economic wealth of member states, with the five permanent members of the Security Council required to pay a larger share because of their special responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security,” according to the UN.
The Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has openly criticised Unifil in several instances, calling on the UN to withdraw its peacekeepers from Lebanon and accusing the mission of serving as human shields for Hezbollah during the recent conflict in Lebanon.
Unifil has reported numerous breaches of the US-brokered truce deal between Israel and Hezbollah that took effect in November, ending 14 months of conflict, including two months of intense Israeli bombardment.
These include nearly 2,200 Israeli airspace incursions, more than 40 air strikes, and close to 1,300 Israeli ground activities in southern Lebanon, a spokesman for the peacekeeping force told The National in April.
On the Lebanese side, Unifil has reported 19 missiles launched from Lebanon into Israel. The force has also found Hezbollah weapons caches and rocket launchers on an almost daily basis. Unifil reports violations of UN Resolution 1701, which ended the 2006 conflict, not the latest truce on which it is based.
The peacekeeping force holds regular meetings with the ceasefire monitoring committee established under the latest truce, which is led by the United States and includes France, the Israeli military and the Lebanese army. Despite this, Israel has continued to strike Lebanon, including the capital, Beirut, claiming that it is striking Hezbollah military sites that violate the agreement.
Defence review at a glance
• Increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 but given “turbulent times it may be necessary to go faster”
• Prioritise a shift towards working with AI and autonomous systems
• Invest in the resilience of military space systems.
• Number of active reserves should be increased by 20%
• More F-35 fighter jets required in the next decade
• New “hybrid Navy” with AUKUS submarines and autonomous vessels
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup – Sep 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs
B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run
C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs
D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The Bio
Name: Lynn Davison
Profession: History teacher at Al Yasmina Academy, Abu Dhabi
Children: She has one son, Casey, 28
Hometown: Pontefract, West Yorkshire in the UK
Favourite book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Favourite Author: CJ Sansom
Favourite holiday destination: Bali
Favourite food: A Sunday roast
Libya's Gold
UN Panel of Experts found regime secretly sold a fifth of the country's gold reserves.
The panel’s 2017 report followed a trail to West Africa where large sums of cash and gold were hidden by Abdullah Al Senussi, Qaddafi’s former intelligence chief, in 2011.
Cases filled with cash that was said to amount to $560m in 100 dollar notes, that was kept by a group of Libyans in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
A second stash was said to have been held in Accra, Ghana, inside boxes at the local offices of an international human rights organisation based in France.
Monster
Directed by: Anthony Mandler
Starring: Kelvin Harrison Jr., John David Washington
3/5
The biog
First Job: Abu Dhabi Department of Petroleum in 1974
Current role: Chairperson of Al Maskari Holding since 2008
Career high: Regularly cited on Forbes list of 100 most powerful Arab Businesswomen
Achievement: Helped establish Al Maskari Medical Centre in 1969 in Abu Dhabi’s Western Region
Future plan: Will now concentrate on her charitable work
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
The specs: Rolls-Royce Cullinan
Price, base: Dh1 million (estimate)
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbo V12
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 563hp @ 5,000rpm
Torque: 850Nm @ 1,600rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 15L / 100km
Drishyam 2
Directed by: Jeethu Joseph
Starring: Mohanlal, Meena, Ansiba, Murali Gopy
Rating: 4 stars
Scores
New Zealand 266 for 9 in 50 overs
Pakistan 219 all out in 47.2 overs
New Zealand win by 47 runs
It Was Just an Accident
Director: Jafar Panahi
Stars: Vahid Mobasseri, Mariam Afshari, Ebrahim Azizi, Hadis Pakbaten, Majid Panahi, Mohamad Ali Elyasmehr
Rating: 4/5
Planes grounded by coronavirus
British Airways: Cancels all direct flights to and from mainland China
Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific: Cutting capacity to/from mainland China by 50 per cent from Jan. 30
Chicago-based United Airlines: Reducing flights to Beijing, Shanghai, and Hong Kong
Ai Seoul: Suspended all flights to China
Finnair: Suspending flights to Nanjing and Beijing Daxing until the end of March
Indonesia's Lion Air: Suspending all flights to China from February
South Korea's Asiana Airlines, Jeju Air and Jin Air: Suspend all flights
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
PROFILE OF HALAN
Started: November 2017
Founders: Mounir Nakhla, Ahmed Mohsen and Mohamed Aboulnaga
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Sector: transport and logistics
Size: 150 employees
Investment: approximately $8 million
Investors include: Singapore’s Battery Road Digital Holdings, Egypt’s Algebra Ventures, Uber co-founder and former CTO Oscar Salazar
