Mere Rhetoric: Israel Politely Requests That UN Allow UNIFIL Soldiers To Do Their Damn Jobs

Israel, of course, is solely and permanently under UN scrutiny for whatever the Human Rights Commission wants to condemn it for today. But it's not Israel that's murdering UN peacekeepers. And presumably - unless you're a lunatic anti-Semite and/or a Ron Paul supporter - it's not Israel that's launching rockets at Israeli schools and hospitals from South Lebanon. UNIFIL soldiers are helpless to protect themselves or prevent Iranian proxies from firing into Israel, and so Israel is politely requesting that the UN please try to stop sucking:

Sunday's terror attack against UNIFIL's Spanish contingent and last week's firing of Katyusha rockets at Kiryat Shmona underscored the need for immediate changes to the peacekeeping force's mandate, senior defense officials said Monday. On Sunday, six United Nations peacekeepers were killed and two others seriously wounded when a bomb struck their armored patrol vehicle.. Israeli defense officials said that recent events in southern Lebanon - Sunday's attack and last week's Katyusha fire - proved that UNIFIL needed a stronger mandate and one that would enable it to better counter the growing threats it faced. UNIFIL's mandate will be up for approval at the UN in August and officials said that recent events highlighted the need for changes. "UNIFIL needs to have more capabilities and a mandate that allows it to crack down harder on armed militias in Lebanon," an official said. "Otherwise these types of attacks will unfortunately continue to happen."

Of course, there are several UN members who are loath to expand UNIFIL's mandate. The controversy, we suggest to you, has to do with a fundamental disagreement about what the role of UNIFIL is. Some people - say, well-meaning American diplomats - think that UNIFIL is there to provide a buffer between Israeli and Lebanese forces. Other people - say, a majority of the United Nations - prefer UNIFIL soldiers to be human shields for Hezbollah. And lest you think we're exaggerating:

Some immediate changes that Israel would like to see to the mandate include the deployment of UNIFIL along the Syrian-Lebanese border to stop the rearmament of Hizbullah

Yes. The current UNIFIL mandate - which requires them to enforce the recent ceasefire and allow the Lebanese army to control South Lebanon - does not allow them to intercept weapons bound for Hezbollah. Good to know that they've been equipped with what they need to succeed.

References:
* Six UN peacekeepers killed in southern Lebanon car bombing [Ha'aretz]
* UNIFIL: We Suck. We Totally, Totally Suck. [MR]
* Israel seeks changes to UNIFIL mandate after attacks [JPost]

Previously:
* France to Lead UNIFIL
* UNIFIL Involvement in 2000 Kidnapping Not News. Involvement of UNIFIL Soldier Who Thought of Lebanon as "Second Homeland", However, Is.
* UNIFIL Given Authorization To Keep Sucking