Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez speaks throughout the ‘World in Progress Barcelona’ Discussion board in Barcelona on October 14, 2024. | Picture credit score: AFP
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez mentioned on Monday (October 14, 2024) that there might be “no withdrawal” of the UN peacekeeping drive from southern Lebanon after Israeli assaults and calls to withdraw.
Israel’s offensive towards the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militia has put the UNIFIL drive deployed in Lebanon since 1978 within the highlight.
The drive, which incorporates round 9,500 troopers from some 50 nations led by a Spanish normal, has reported in latest days a number of Israeli assaults that injured 5 of its troopers and sparked worldwide condemnation.
On Sunday (October 13, 2024), Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu referred to as on UNIFIL to withdraw for its personal security, saying its presence had “the impact of offering human shields to Hezbollah terrorists.”
Spain condemns Netanyahu’s name for the drive to withdraw and “there might be no withdrawal of UNIFIL,” Sánchez mentioned at a discussion board in Barcelona.
Sánchez affirmed his dedication to a 2006 UN Safety Council decision, agreed upon after the final main battle between Israel and Hezbollah, which stipulated that solely the Lebanese military and UN peacekeepers needs to be deployed in southern Lebanon. .
That dedication “makes extra sense right now than ever after seeing what is going on on the bottom,” Sánchez mentioned.
Israel has dedicated an “unacceptable” violation of worldwide legislation and Spain will proceed to contribute to the drive “as a result of now we have a agency and clear dedication to peace,” Protection Minister Margarita Robles advised reporters in Madrid.
Sánchez has turn into a strident critic of the Netanyahu authorities’s warfare in Gaza, which was sparked by Hamas’ unprecedented assault on Israel final 12 months.
The warfare has drawn in Iranian-backed teams from throughout the area, together with Hezbollah, and final month Israel stepped up its cross-border hearth with the group and launched a floor offensive in southern Lebanon.
Revealed – October 14, 2024 10:07 pm IST