Usa, MO, Israele, Libano, guerra, ONU Nyt 06-07-19
Peacekeepers – La forza Onu in Libano presenta una dura
realtà e una lezione
HASSAN M.
FATTAH e WARREN HOGE
Tesi:
La missione Onu nel Sud Libano, Unifil, è a stento in grado
di badare a sé stessa, una sua sede è stata bombardata dagli israeliani, ucciso
un suo membro originario del Ghana, assieme alla sua famiglia. Unifil è una piccola
forza di 2000 uomini e ha una un’area di azione limitata alla striscia di
confine. Le sue carenze spiegano come deve essere una forza davvero efficace.
Unifil, costituita originalmente da 6000 soldati e tecnici
(indiani, ghanesi, francesi, italiani e polacchi), venne creata nel 1978, come
forza ad interim che assicurasse il ritiro delle forze di Israele dal Sud
Libano, la sicurezza della regione e aiutasse il governo a riprendere autorità
nell’area. Unifil, sotto-dotata di personale e d’armamenti, non ha avuto
l’appoggio delle maggiori potenze per imporre la pace; servì al tempo come
cuscinetto; non è riuscita a controllare i guerriglieri palestinesi, gli
occupanti israeliani e poi le milizie hezbollah che cacciarono gli israeliani.
La creazione di un contingente Onu richiede una risoluzione
del C.d.S., che si è già riunito 3 volte senza riuscire a decidere un’azione o
a emettere una dichairazione.
L’ambasciatore americano all’Onu, Blton, si è espresso contro le due proposte
di Annan di una forza multilaterale e il cessate il fuoco
Nyt 06-07-19
Peacekeepers
– U.N. Force in Lebanon Offers Harsh Realities and Lessons
By HASSAN M.
FATTAH and WARREN HOGE
HOSH, Lebanon, July 18 — Buried in the
rubble of one of the homes demolished in Israel’s relentless bombardment of
southern Lebanon was a stark illustration of why the United Nations’
peacekeeping efforts have been seen as ineffective.
–
A Ghanaian member of the United Nations Interim Force in
Lebanon, known as Unifil, was killed along with his
family here on Sunday by an Israeli bomb. And more than 24 hours later, peacekeeping troops could not
even leave their base to dig out his body, because the short trip to his
house was too dangerous.
–
“They are barely able to take care of themselves,” said Timur
Goksel, who spent 20 years as an official with Unifil, and now
lectures at American University in Beirut. “How can you expect them to do
their work? It’s a mini-force
with small engineering capacity and a narrow area of operation right
along the border. What can anyone expect them to do?”
– The saga of the troops, who are charged with keeping the peace and observing the border, offers a sobering reminder of the
grueling realities of peacekeeping to politicians hoping that a new United
Nations contingent might be the solution in Lebanon.
And, peacekeeping experts say, it offers lessons on how to shape a
more effective force.
On Monday, Secretary General Kofi Annan, backed by Prime Minister
Tony Blair of Britain, called for a new stabilization detachment in southern
Lebanon.
Mr. Annan said that the unit would have to be much larger
than the existing 2,000-man Unifil, and that it would operate with a broader mandate, which would
give it the ability to stabilize Lebanon so that the government could gain
control of the south and “sort out the question of the disarmament of the
militia.” It is not clear
if Mr. Annan will propose that any new force be drawn from major powers.
Mr. Annan, who returns to New York from
Europe on Wednesday, is expected to brief the Security Council on Thursday. Creating a blue-helmeted contingent
will require a Council resolution, a requirement that can delay swift action.
In a telephone interview from Brussels,
Mr. Annan said, “I will be appealing for their political will for action
because around the world people do not understand why the Council has not been
able to act when the Middle East is burning.”
–
The Council has met three times to discuss Lebanon without
taking any action or making any statement. On Monday,
John R. Bolton, the American ambassador, discouraged talk of either a
multilateral force or a cease-fire, both proposals that Mr. Annan has made.
Mr. Annan said he questioned a call from
Israel to set up its own security cordon in south Lebanon. “They may call it
what they want, but to the others it will be an occupation, since it will be on
somebody else’s territory,” he said. “You need a third party, hence my
suggestion for a stabilization force.”
Mr. Goksel emphasized that any unit with the job of deterring actions
would immediately be seen as an attempt to rein in Hezbollah.
“This will immediately be seen as an occupation force, and then the
trouble will start,” Mr. Goksel said.
Jean-Marie Guéhenno, the under secretary
general for peacekeeping, said the problems confronting Unifil were ones
frequently experienced when peace broke down.
“One should never forget that peace is
made by those who fought, it is not made for them by the international
community,” he said in a telephone interview from Brussels, where he was
accompanying Mr. Annan.
–
When Unifil was formed in 1978, it was meant as an interim
force to confirm the withdrawal of Israeli forces from southern Lebanon,
restore security in the area and help the government regain authority over the
area. But to many here, Unifil gradually became a lifeline, too, as a series
of flare-ups and wars forced the mission to undertake humanitarian missions as
well.
–
Undermanned and often outgunned, Unifil did not have the political
backing of major powers to enforce peace.
At times, the force served as a
successful buffer in Lebanon, but ultimately the system broke down. Unifil
troops failed to control first Palestinian guerrillas, then Israeli occupiers,
and then the Hezbollah militia, which drove out the Israelis.
–
The Unifil force shrank
significantly after Israel withdrew from southern Lebanon in 2000. It has 2,000
members today, including Indian, Ghanaian, French, Italian and Polish troops
and aides, down from more than 6,000 troops and aides at its peak.
The unit was reduced deliberately,
according to United Nations diplomats, in an effort to pressure the Lebanese
government to take action to disarm Hezbollah and declare its authority over
the south.
That number of troops has proven
woefully low as the bombing campaign began last week. The force has had a hard
time supplying its own bases and observation posts in the south.
–
They have about a week of
diesel fuel left and are running short of food and water, and the bases have
come under fire, said Richard Morczenski, a civil affairs officer with the
force.
“If you operate in a war zone and you
are also helping people, there are risks, calculated risks, but risks
nonetheless,” Mr. Goksel said. “That’s why you have armies doing the job.”
Hassan M. Fattah reported from Hosh for
this article, and Warren Hoge from the United Nations.
New York Times