The UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) issued a statement expressing alarm regarding the killing and displacement of Lebanese civilians during the Israeli invasion, and particularly the Israeli rhetoric they viewed as aimed at dehumanizing Lebanese people in general, and portraying Shi’ite civilians in particular as “enemies.”
The statement called on Israel to cease attacks against populated areas, and similarly urged them to rescind wholesale evacuation orders spanning much of southern Lebanon, noting forcible population transfers may amount to war crimes.
They expressed concern about Israeli threats to inflict Gaza-level destruction on Lebanon, and called on them to refrain from further rhetoric dehumanizing the Lebanese, and any comments aimed at legitimizing collective punishment against the people of Lebanon.
An image of displaced in southern Lebanon ©MSF
They noted Israel had destroyed entire villages in southern Lebanon, destroying schools, health facilities, water infrastructure, and places of worship, and similarly called for Israel to stop impeding humanitarian access to the area.
As the war continues, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun reiterated his support for peace talks, saying it was the only way to secure the liberation of the occupied south. Six distinct deals have been reached with Israel since the war began, none of which required Israel to stop attacking Lebanon nor set a timeline for any meaningful withdrawal from the country.
“Pilot zones” stand as the lone accomplishment, a handful of villages, some of which Israel had already destroyed and weren’t occupying in the first place, were handed to the Lebanese military in what Israel openly called a “symbolic” gesture. Even that has been limited, with US officials conceding the pilot zone areas remain largely undefined. Talks are expected to resume in September, though Israel has consistently presented ending attacks or withdrawing from Lebanon outright as “red lines” they won’t discuss.
Another diplomatic issue coming up is the impending expiration of the UNIFIL mandate. Israel has long sought the expulsion of the peacekeepers from southern Lebanon, accusing them of being secretly in league with Hezbollah. International partners to the UNIFIL are proposing an alternative replacement to the UNIFIL.
Italy, in particular, is expected as a likely contributor to such a force, as they have often been a substantial contributor to UNIFIL forces. Many of those nations want a guarantee Israel won’t be actively attacking the area in which the post-UNIFIL force is deployed, however, and that’s a guarantee Israel will likely be very reluctant to give.
