Ex-UN peacekeeper in Lebanon says UNIFIL is ‘totally subject to Hezbollah’

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A former UN peacekeeper who served in the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNSTO), confirmed on Sunday in an interview with the Danish news outlet B.T. that UNIFIL is “totally subject to Hezbollah.”

The former UN official, who used the alias Michael, reportedly served in the UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon a decade ago.

UNSTO, the first UN peacekeeping mission, was established in 1948 with the goal of "monitor[ing] ceasefires, supervise[ing] armistice agreements, prevent[ing] isolated incidents from escalating and assist[ing] other UN peacekeeping operations in the region to fulfil their respective mandates.”

Following the Second Lebanon War between Hezbollah and Israel in 2006, the UN Security Council passed Resolution 1701, which called for the cessation of hostilities, the disarmament of all armed groups in Lebanon, including Hezbollah, and mandated that southern Lebanon be free of any armed Hezbollah presence, placing the area under the control of the Lebanese military and UNIFIL (United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon).

At the time, Michael was working for UNIFIL and was tasked with observing and reporting violations of the UN resolution.

Despite UNIFIL’s mission in Lebanon, Michael admitted that the UN peacekeeping organization was totally dependent on the goodwill of Hezbollah.

"We were totally subject to Hezbollah. We clearly had limited freedom of movement. For example, we never operated after dark for fear of Hezbollah. So they had free time in the evening and night hours,” the former UN peacekeeper told the Danish media outlet.

Michael further noted that Hezbollah was ostensibly dictating UNIFIL’s freedom of movement in the area.

"They simply blocked the road. They were not visibly armed but aggressive, and it was quite clear that they were members of Hezbollah – we knew very well who decided things, especially in the Shiite cities,” Michael recalled. “They didn't want us to see what they were doing.”

The former UN peacekeeper said he witnessed suspicious individuals, likely Hezbollah forces, close to Israeli border military installations.

"When we patrolled the Blue Line, we often saw 'civilians' very close to the Israeli military installations taking pictures,” Michael said. “When that happened, we withdrew and observed from a distance – we were simply instructed to do so.”

Michael complained that there were no consequences for the terror group, despite Hezbollah's repeated violations.

"We reported daily violations of resolution 1701 to our superiors, including in particular restrictions on our freedom of movement, and we were instructed to report all violations regardless of number. But nothing ever happened,” he said.

"We did not hear back from them, and nothing was initiated. It was wildly frustrating, and it only confirmed to me what I had experienced in other countries I was posted to – the UN is incompetent,” the former UN peacekeeper said.

As a result, the UN agency enabled Hezbollah, with massive Iranian support, to become a far more powerful and influential military and political force than it had been before 2006.

Prior to the current conflict between Israel and Hezbollah forces, the terror group was considered to be one of the world’s strongest non-state actors – with military capabilities that outmatched those of many conventional armies. At its peak, Hezbollah reportedly had an arsenal of some 150,000 rockets and missiles. Hezbollah reportedly still has a large number of drones supplied by Iran.

Earlier in October, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected international accusations that the IDF had targeted UNIFIL in the ongoing fire exchange with Hezbollah operatives in southern Lebanon.

“The charge that Israel deliberately attacked UNIFIL personnel is completely false. It's exactly the opposite. Israel repeatedly asked UNIFIL to get out of harm’s way,” Netanyahu stated.

Israel has argued that Hezbollah forces use UNIFIL staff as human shields and attack Israeli forces from close to UNIFIL positions, jeopardizing their safety. However, it has still refused to withdraw its forces from combat zones in southern Lebanon.

The news outlet Israel Hayom reported on Monday that captured Hezbollah terrorists told IDF investigators that Hezbollah bribed UNIFIL personnel to use the UN bases, a claim UNIFIL denies.