International and regional efforts to resolve Lebanon’s crises amid internal obstructions

BEIRUT — Israeli officials demanded the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield that the U.S. aid to Lebanon be conditional on the removal of Hezbollah operatives from the Israeli-Lebanese border, the commitment of the Lebanese Army to crackdown on Hezbollah’s production of precision rockets, and increased efforts to combat Hezbollah’s weapons smuggling, according to a report from Israeli media outlet Ynetnews.

Commenting on the continuous U.S. supply of weapons and equipment to the Lebanese Army, the latest of which was the delivery of six helicopters at a value of $ 40 million, Israel expressed its concerns of the leakage of these weapons to Hezbollah and their use against Israel.

According to the website, the Israeli officials demanded the ambassador to redouble the efforts of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) to monitor the areas in southern Lebanon, where Hezbollah operates without supervision.

In response to the demands of the Lebanese government, Director General of the Russian Roscosmos State Corporation for Space Activities Dmitriy Rogozin announced that the corporation had provided detailed satellite images of Beirut port before and after the explosion in order to hand them over to the Lebanese authorities to use them in investigations.

Meanwhile, some Lebanese politicians continue to obstruct efforts and give priority to their personal interests. Head of the Free Patriotic Movement Gibran Bassil, a Syriac Maronite, announced that the bloc would present to the Constitutional Council an appeal against the amendments to the electoral law, which had been approved by the House of Representatives, which would bring the election date forward to 27 March from 8 May. Both Basil and his father-in-law Lebanese President Michel Aoun appealed the decision citing concerns over the weather.

The Constitutional Council is supposed to issue a decision regarding the appeal within a maximum period of 30 days.