The head of mission and force commander of the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) reaffirmed the peacekeeping force’s “strong commitment to creating space for a political and diplomatic solution between Lebanon and Israel.” Maj. Gen. Aroldo Lázaro Sáenz, the UNIFIL chief, spoke at a celebration of the 77th United Nations Day at UNIFIL headquarters in Naqoura, Lebanon. Referring to the recent Israel-Lebanon agreement defining the maritime border between the two countries, Sáenz said, “Recent events give us hope.” He added, “If the two countries can find an understanding at sea, my hope is that, someday soon, they will also be able to find it on land and on the fundamental issues that divide them.” Sáenz urged Lebanon and Israel to reach an agreement on demarcation of the Blue Line, the “line of withdrawal” that constitutes the de facto border between Israel and Lebanon.
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In June 2000, following a survey done by a UN cartographer, assisted by UNIFIL teams led by Lebanese Brig. Gens. Imad Anka and Amin Htait, the secretary-general reported to the Security Council that Israel had fully withdrawn its forces to the Blue Line in accordance with Res. 425. Nevertheless, Lebanon has asserted that Israel did not withdraw to the Blue Line in the Sheba Farms area, a claim that Secretary-General Kofi Annan in 2005 called “not compatible with Security Council resolutions.”