Clashes between U.N. peacekeepers and residents of Aitit, in southern Lebanon's Sour district, during which UNIFIL soldiers fired smoke grenades on July 10, 2025. (Photo sent to L'Orient Today by residents)
BEIRUT — A United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) patrol entered the Sour district village of Aitit on Thursday morning without a Lebanese Army escort, prompting residents of the town to intercept the troops and request that they turn back and wait for the army to accompany it before re-entering the village.
When UNIFIL troops refused to leave, the situation escalated into clashes in which peacekeepers say residents threw rocks toward the patrol, which launched smoke grenades at the residents to disperse them.
According to information from L'Orient Today's correspondent in the South, the UNIFIL patrol was composed of Finnish and French troops and was headed toward Wadi Jilo, through Aitit. The Lebanese Army was quick to respond to the clashes once they broke out and, having calmed the situation, deployed in the area.
UNIFIL confirmed the incident in a statement obtained by L'Orient Today, saying that "civilians" had blocked a "planned patrol" in the area. According to UNIFIL, it had coordinated its Thursday morning route with the Lebanese Army.
"While the situation was initially calm, the individuals soon began throwing stones at the peacekeepers who were forced to disperse the crowd with smoke to protect themselves from harm," the UNIFIL statement reads.
Residents have blocked unaccompanied UNIFIL convoys on several occasions in recent months, demanding that their own country's forces be present alongside the international troops.
Theoretically, the U.N. mission can move independently "in sectors where its forces are deployed" (Article 12 of U.N. Resolution 1701) and operates under Chapter VI of the U.N., which does not authorize use of force to carry out its mission. The Lebanese Army, for its part, says it does not have enough troops to escort every peacekeeper patrol.
UNIFIL's ability to move without the army through southern Lebanese villages has come into question in recent years, especially by Hezbollah.
UNIFIL spokesperson Andrea Tenenti said that "freedom of movement is a central element of UNIFIL’s mandate" and that "any hindrance to this freedom, whether UNIFIL operates with or without the army, constitutes a violation of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701."
"We have asked the Lebanese authorities to bring those responsible to justice," he added.
MP Ashraf Rifi, known to be an opponent of Hezbollah, called on the Lebanese state to "make the aggressors pay and have no tolerance for those who expose Lebanon to the gravest dangers."
"Either the State is the sole sovereign of all decisions and all land, or the country will disintegrate," he insisted. He questions how these reoccurring instances could be "compatible" with Resolution 1701 and Hezbollah's withdrawal from south of the Litani River.
Recurring tensions
Friction between UNIFIL and southern Lebanese residents, has increased since the war between Hezbollah and Israel ended in November 2024, as UNIFIL and the Lebanese Army have expanded their jurisdiction and deployment in the South as Hezbollah withdraws.
UNIFIL, alongside the United States, France, Lebanon and Israel, is part of the "international monitoring committee" in charge of overseeing the cease-fire, which Israel violates on a daily basis. The Israeli army has killed around 200 people since agreeing to a truce.
A U.N. vote is scheduled in August on the renewal of UNIFIL's mandate, the future of which is the subject of much scrutiny amid reports in the Israeli press suggesting that the United States and Israel could oppose it.
However, a U.S. diplomatic source told L’Orient-Le Jour that rumors of an American veto were "inaccurate."
On June 25, President Joseph Aoun said extending the UNIFIL mandate was "a key factor for maintaining stability and security on the country’s southern border."
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