BEIRUT, Jan 17 (KUNA) -- The visiting UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres lauded on Friday the decisive role of the UN peacekeeping troops in south Lebanon.
Guterres, in a statement he addressed at the headquarters of the UN Interim Peacekeeping Forces in South Lebanon (UNIFIL) in the coastal Lebanese town of Naquora, hailed the peacekeepers for "bravely standing in the face of strikes across the blue line," during the recent war in the region.
The UN peacekeepers were repeatedly attacked during the latest bout of hostilities in the frontier areas.
Such attacks are utterly unaccepted and breach the international laws, he said.
Current relative calm in the region is largely due to the UNIFIL efforts and constitutes an opportunity to boost implementation of the UN Resolution 1701, he said, warning the Israeli forces against continuing the occupation of some regions along the border line. He has also acknowledged that there are more than 100 arms depots and some irregular gunmen in the area between the border "blue line" and the Litani River northward.
The recent hostilities ended with a truce mediated by superpowers. The occupation Israeli troops have been carrying out phased withdrawal from some regions in the frontier they have recently seized, giving way for troops of the Lebanese Army to retake positions in the region. (end) ayb.rk