[ecr]

“The first step towards achieving an overall peace in the region is an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and Lebanon,” he said to the members of the Security Council, who met to discuss the situation in Lebanon.

In this regard, he reaffirmed that Algeria considers “the only way to ensure stability in Lebanon and peace in the region is the full and immediate implementation of UN Security Council’s resolution 1701.”

“This includes the deployment of the Lebanese army throughout the Lebanese territory within internationally recognized borders” and “the complete withdrawal” of Zionist forces from Lebanese lands.

Recalling that Algeria has already warned that the military actions of the Zionist occupying power will not be limited to Gaza and the West Bank, Bendjama once again affirmed that “the aggression will not stop at Lebanon.”

According to Ambassador Amar Bendjama, the real and persistent threat to the Middle East is and will remain the ongoing occupation by the  Zionist forces of the Arab lands of Palestine, Lebanon and Syria.

In this regard, he noted that “not addressing this root cause and focusing only on the symptoms will only ensure that the tragedy will repeat itself.”

“The occupation must end now before we are faced again with an irreversible catastrophe,” he said.

Highlighting the “alarming deterioration” of the situation in Lebanon and the “dangerous escalation” that seriously endangers the lives of civilians and UN peacekeepers, Ambassador Bendjama warned against the passivity of the Security Council.

“The persistence of this invasion and the violation of Lebanon's sovereignty and territorial integrity without a serious reaction from the Security Council will only embolden the Zionist entity and encourage further “violations of international law and even greater instability throughout the region,” he emphasized.

He added that as long as the Zionist entity continues to “benefit from the impunity of the Council, it will perpetuate the cycle of violence, using the same flagrant tactics of mass destruction and targeting innocent civilian lives.”

In this regard, he questioned “When will this Council assume its responsibilities in maintaining international peace and security? When will this Council impose sanctions” on the Zionist authorities for “the atrocities and violations they commit?”

Algeria’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations deplored the behaviour of the Zionist occupation army in Lebanon, which “disregards all legal restrictions, considering the country’s sky, sea, and land as a free field for its aggression.”

“The figures speak for themselves: more than 1.2 million people have been displaced in Lebanon, and hundreds of thousands of others have been forced to seek refuge in neighbouring Syria. Thousands of others have been killed or injured and Lebanon's infrastructure is being ruined,” he lamented, reiterating Algeria's solidarity and support for Lebanon in the face of this “barbaric aggression.”

In this respect, Bendjama praised the “central role” of UNIFIL in maintaining regional stability, expressing his profound concern over the Israeli forces’ recent establishment of a gathering zone next to UNIFIL’s position in Maroun al-Ras.

“And we condemn” the Zionist forces for firing on three positions used by UNIFIL, injuring two of our peacekeepers, he added.[/ecr]