The United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO) is an organization founded on 29 May 1948 for peacekeeping in the Middle East. Established amidst the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, its primary task was initially to provide the military command structure to the peacekeeping forces in the Middle East to enable the peacekeepers to observe and maintain the ceasefire, and in assisting the parties to the Armistice Agreements in the supervision of the application and observance of the terms of those Agreements. The organization's structure and role has evolved over time as a result of the various conflicts in the region and at times UNTSO personnel have been used to rapidly deploy to other areas of the Middle East in support of other United Nations operations. The command structure of the UNTSO was maintained to cover the later peacekeeping organisations of the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) and the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) to which UNTSO continues to provide military observers.
United Nations Security Council Resolution 425, adopted on 19 March 1978, five days after the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in the context of Palestinian insurgency in South Lebanon and the Lebanese Civil War, called on Israel to withdraw immediately its forces from Lebanon and established the United Nations Interim Force In Lebanon (UNIFIL). It was adopted by 12 votes to none; Czechoslovakia and the Soviet Union abstained, and China did not participate.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1559, adopted on 2 September 2004, after recalling resolutions 425 (1978), 426 (1978), 520 (1982) and 1553 (2004) on the situation in Lebanon, the Council supported free and fair presidential elections in Lebanon, urging the Lebanese government to establish control over its territory, disarm militias like Hezbollah, and facilitate the withdrawal of any remaining foreign forces from the country.
The Blue Line is a demarcation line dividing Lebanon from Israel and the Golan Heights. It was published by the United Nations on 7 June 2000 for the purposes of determining whether Israel had fully withdrawn from Lebanon. It has been described as "temporary" and "not a border, but a “line of withdrawal”. It is the subject of an ongoing border dispute between Israel, Lebanon, and Hezbollah.
The 1978 South Lebanon conflict, also known as the First Israeli invasion of Lebanon and codenamed Operation Litani by Israel, began when Israel invaded southern Lebanon up to the Litani River in March 1978. It was in response to the Coastal Road massacre near Tel Aviv by Palestinian militants based in Lebanon. The conflict resulted in the deaths of 1,100–2,000 Lebanese and Palestinians, 20 Israelis, and the internal displacement of 100,000 to 250,000 people in Lebanon. The Israel Defense Forces gained a military victory against the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) as the latter was forced to withdraw from southern Lebanon, preventing it from launching attacks on Israel from across its land border with Lebanon. In response to the outbreak of hostilities, the United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 425 and Resolution 426 on 19 March 1978, which called on Israel to immediately withdraw its troops from Lebanon and established the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).
United Nations Security Council resolution 520, adopted unanimously on 17 September 1982, after the assassination of Lebanese President Bashir Gemayel and reaffirming resolutions 508 (1982), 509 (1982) and 516 (1982), the Council demanded that Israel withdraw immediately from Lebanon, and that Lebanese sovereignty be respected in order to restore a stable government in Lebanon.
United Nations Security Council resolution 521, adopted unanimously on 19 September 1982, after condemning the massacre of Palestinians in Beirut, Lebanon, by the Lebanese Forces militia group, the Council reaffirmed resolutions 512 (1982) and 513 (1982) which called for respect for the rights of the civilian population without any discrimination and repudiates all acts of violence against that population.
United Nations Security Council Resolution 426, adopted on 19 March 1978 at the 2075th meeting of the Security Council, is concerned with both the creation of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) and the duration of its mandate. It comes immediately after and complements Resolution 425, adopted during an earlier meeting on the same day.
United Nations Security Council resolution 509, adopted unanimously on 6 June 1982, after recalling previous resolutions on the topic including 425 (1978) and 508 (1982), the Council expressed concern and demanded Israel unconditionally withdraw all its military forces from Lebanon back to its internationally recognised border.
United Nations Security Council resolution 513, adopted unanimously on 4 July 1982, after recalling resolutions 508 (1982), 509 (1982), 512 (1982) and the Geneva Conventions, the council expressed its alarm at the deteriorating humanitarian situation in west Beirut and southern Lebanon.
United Nations Security Council resolution 515, adopted on 29 July 1982, after recalling resolutions 512 (1982), 513 (1982) and the Geneva Conventions, the Council demanded that Israel lift the blockade on Beirut, the capital city of Lebanon, to allow urgent aid to the civilian population there. It also requested the Secretary-General to transmit the text of the resolution to the Government of Israel and to monitor the implementation of Resolution 515.
United Nations Security Council resolution 516, adopted on 1 August 1982, after recalling resolutions 508 (1982), 509 (1982), 512 (1982), 513 (1982) and 515 (1982), the council demanded an immediate cessation of military activities between Israel and Lebanon, noting the violations of the ceasefire in Beirut.
United Nations Security Council resolution 518, adopted unanimously on 12 August 1982, after recalling resolutions 508 (1982), 509 (1982), 512 (1982), 513 (1982), 515 (1982), 516 (1982) and 517 (1982), the council again demanded that Israel and all other parties strictly observe the resolutions of the Security Council placed on them.
United Nations Security Council resolution 587, adopted on 23 September 1986, after recalling previous resolutions on the topic, the council strongly condemned attacks on the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) in southern Lebanon, expressing indignation at support the attacks receive. Several people died in the attack, in which UNIFIL blamed the Israeli-backed South Lebanon Army for perpetrating.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1337, adopted unanimously on 30 January 2001, after recalling previous resolutions on Israel and Lebanon, including resolutions 425 (1978), 426 (1978), 501 (1982), 508 (1982), 509 (1982), 520 (1982), and 1310 (2000), the Council decided to extend the mandate of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) for a further six months until 31 July 2001.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1365, adopted unanimously on 31 July 2001, after recalling previous resolutions on Israel and Lebanon, including resolutions 425 (1978), 426 (1978), 1310 (2000) and 1337 (2001), the Council decided to extend the mandate of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) for a further six months until 31 January 2002.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1461 was adopted unanimously on 30 January 2003, after recalling previous resolutions on Israel and Lebanon, including resolutions 425 (1978) and 1428 (2002). The council decided to extend the mandate of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) for a further six months until 31 July 2003.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1496, adopted unanimously on 31 July 2003, after recalling previous resolutions on Israel and Lebanon, including resolutions 425 (1978), 426 (1978) and 1461 (2003), the council extended the mandate of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) for a further six months until 31 January 2004.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1525, adopted unanimously on 30 January 2004, after recalling previous resolutions on Israel and Lebanon, including resolutions 425 (1978), 426 (1978) and 1496 (2003), the council extended the mandate of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) for a further six months until 31 July 2004.
United Nations Security Council Resolution 1655, adopted unanimously on January 31, 2006, after recalling previous resolutions on Israel and Lebanon, including resolutions 425 (1978), 426 (1978) and 1614 (2005), the Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) for a further six months until July 31, 2006.
