The Head of Mission and Force Commander of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), Major-General Paolo Serra, today chaired a regular tripartite meeting with senior officers from the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) and the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) at the UN Position at Ras Al Naqoura crossing.

The participants discussed issues relevant to the implementation of UN Security Council resolution 1701, including the situation along the Line of Withdrawal (Blue Line), the ongoing visible marking of the Blue Line, violations and incidents as well as the issue of withdrawal of Israeli forces from northern Ghajar.

Major-General Serra commended both parties for their coordination with UNIFIL and emphasized the importance of these meetings: "The Tripartite forum is an indispensable confidence building mechanism that has proved effective in containing incidents or violations and de-conflicting the situation at critical moments. I expressed my most sincere appreciation for the commitment the parties demonstrated during my tenure in maintaining the cessation of hostilities."

"I have received assurances from the parties that they want to continue working closely with UNIFIL to maintain calm in the area."

The newly appointed UNIFIL Force Commander and Head of Mission Major-General Luciano Portolano, who is due to assume command of UNIFIL on 24 July, also attended the meeting.