JERUSALEM—As August nears its end, the Trump administration will decide whether to vote to end the mandate of the UN mission tasked with preventing Hezbollah’s rocket attacks on Israel at the UN Security Council.

Several American and Israeli experts on the mandate told Digital that the U.S. government should withdraw its support because the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) exemplifies the U.N.’s failure to stop the Iranian-backed group.

Former U.S. Ambassador David Friedman stated, “Among the U.N.’s many failures in the Middle East, UNIFIL is perhaps the most glaring. Despite being responsible for ensuring Hezbollah did not rearm after the 2006 war, it stood by as Hezbollah grew into the world’s largest non-state terrorist and military organization. Stability in Lebanon, now within reach thanks to Israel’s removal of Hezbollah’s leadership, will not come through UNIFIL.”

Following the 2006 Second Lebanon War between Israel and Hezbollah, Resolution 1701 stipulated that UNIFIL, along with the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF), should prevent Hezbollah’s activities in southern Lebanon.

Hezbollah joined Hamas in its war against Israel, a day after the Iranian regime-backed terrorist organization attacked Israel from Gaza and murdered over 1,200 people, including more than 40 Americans.

In October, Digital reported that UNIFIL soldiers had failed to halt Hezbollah’s significant expansion of rockets and military weapons since the mandate began in 2006.

Israel’s U.N. Ambassador Danny Danon previously accused UNIFIL of failing to prevent Hezbollah, a U.S.-designated terrorist movement, from establishing military outposts on the border with Israel.

Digital revealed a military outpost containing explosives and mines, according to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), located just 300 yards north of the border with Israel.

When asked if Israel wants the UNIFIL mandate to end, Jonathan Harounoff, international spokesperson for Israel’s Mission to the United Nations, told Digital this week that “Israel is still evaluating the situation.”

A U.S. State Department spokesperson told Digital, “We have nothing to announce at this time” regarding a vote against continuing the UNIFIL mandate.

Dr. Zoe Levornik and Sarit Zehavi, from the Israel Alma Research and Education Center, stated on June 10: “Over the years, UNIFIL has had many chances to improve and fulfill its role, particularly given Israel’s repeated warnings. However, no real effort has been made to change the organization’s conduct. There is no reason to believe that renewing the mandate, even with improvements, will bring about the necessary change to make UNIFIL’s presence in southern Lebanon relevant and effective in maintaining the security of both Israel and Lebanon.”

In response to Alma’s criticism, UNIFIL spokesman Andrea Teneti told Digital, “The LAF continues to benefit from UNIFIL’s support, not only to ensure full deployment in areas currently occupied by Israel, but also through training, capacity-building, and the development of essential capabilities needed to take over our mandated tasks on land and at sea.”

He added, “The mission’s relevance remains vital in maintaining an impartial international presence on the ground, helping to monitor the situation and reinforce the efforts of the LAF. Additionally, UNIFIL is providing essential support to local communities during this particularly challenging period, contributing to stability in the area despite the numerous shelling monitored and reported since 27 November 2024.”

Teneti also stated, “Implementation of 1701 is not UNIFIL’s responsibility alone but requires commitment from both sides. We are supporting the parties in the implementation of the mandate. In recent months, the LAF and UNIFIL have recovered a large number of ammunition caches as well as positions previously used by Hezbollah. The situation is more stable than earlier, but air strikes are continuing and the stability is still fragile.”

Zehavi, a resident of northern Israel, where Hezbollah’s missile fire has caused significant destruction, challenged the UNIFIL spokesman’s comments, stating that all the things mentioned by UNIFIL “are secondary to the primary issue of the mandate, which is the disarmament of Hezbollah.”

Zehavi pointed out that despite the UNIFIL spokesman’s claim that UNIFIL seized ammunition used by Hezbollah, UNIFIL has provided no evidence. She asked, “In which towns” is Hezbollah being disarmed? She stressed, “Where are the pictures? How come there are no proofs and only statements that they are doing that? As a resident of the north, I want to see proofs to remind everybody that the IDF showed proofs of the arms of Hezbollah in south Lebanon and brought them into Israel.”

She also questioned UNIFIL’s training of the Lebanese army over the past 18 years, suggesting that “the United States and France can do that better than UNIFIL,” mentioning the new mechanism set up to address violations via U.S. and French Generals who are in the region.

Zehavi asserted that UNIFIL over the years “tied our hands” during the Israel-Hezbollah war.

She added that Israel is enforcing the disarming of Hezbollah through continued actions. The Biden administration and France brokered a fragile ceasefire in November between Hezbollah and Israel, aiming to “promote conditions for a permanent and comprehensive situation,” preventing a return of high-intensity warfare between Israel and Hezbollah.

In response to Zehavi’s questions, Teneti said “All our findings—whether related to activities conducted with or without the Lebanese Armed Forces—are shared with the members of the Security Council and also transmitted to the Mechanism, as agreed by both Lebanon and Israel. This is our authorized reporting line. Additionally, all detailed information is published quarterly in the Secretary-General’s report on the implementation of Resolution 1701, which is a public document.”

Experts and media reports indicate that pro-Hezbollah officials and soldiers within Lebanon’s Army remain a significant problem. In late January, a LAF chief reportedly sent a warning to Hezbollah. The LAF‘s Suhil Bahij Gharb, who oversees military intelligence for southern Lebanon, secured the confidential material from a military facility run by the U.S., France and the U.N. interim force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).

The White House and the U.S. National Security Council did not immediately respond to Digital press queries.

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