MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
A U.N. peacekeeping mission that has monitored the Lebanon - sorry, the Lebanese-Israeli border for almost half a century is set to wind down next year. The U.S. and Israel pushed through a Security Council resolution ending its mandate, even though it has not been quiet along the border. Jane Arraf reports from south Lebanon.
UNIDENTIFIED PEACEKEEPER #1: (Non-English language spoken).
JANE ARRAF, BYLINE: We're in a UNIFIL armored vehicle with U.N. peacekeepers in south Lebanon. These ones are Italian, one of the biggest contingents in a peacekeeping mission that includes almost 50 countries.
UNIDENTIFIED PEACEKEEPER #2: (Non-English language spoken).
ARRAF: UNIFIL was created in 1978 to monitor Israel's withdrawal after it occupied South Lebanon, targeting Palestinian militants. Fighting in recent years has been between the militant Lebanese group Hezbollah and Israel. And although the mission's name is the U.N. Interim Force in Lebanon, it has stayed.
(SOUNDBITE OF ENGINE REVVING)
ARRAF: We're with U.N. peacekeepers in the village of Yaroun, about a mile from the border between Israel and Lebanon. We're standing in front of a church where there's no roof left after airstrikes here. This is a mixed Christian and Muslim village. And the damage here was done during the height of the fighting, but in other towns along the border, Israeli airstrikes have continued even after last year's ceasefire. That ceasefire was brokered by the U.S. But while the U.N. says Hezbollah has not launched any cross-border attacks since then, the U.N. mission says Israel has violated the ceasefire roughly 10,000 times, including air and ground incursions.
UNIDENTIFIED PEACEKEEPER #3: (Non-English language spoken).
(LAUGHTER)
ARRAF: Irish battalion commander Lieutenant Colonel Ed McDonagh has 14 Lebanese border villages in his sector.
ED MCDONAGH: I see no presence of Hezbollah operatives operating within this area. You know, the Hezbollah flags - they're still flying. But certainly from what we can see operationally, there's very little to nil Hezbollah activity taking place.
ARRAF: Israel, which has not provided evidence, says it is targeting Hezbollah attempts to rebuild military infrastructure.
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ARRAF: But at UNIFIL's Beirut headquarters in the mountains near the capital, spokesperson Candice Ardell says they're not seeing that either.
CANDICE ARDELL: We have not seen any evidence of Hezbollah rebuilding military infrastructure in the south. We're continuing to patrol, to monitor and report the violations that we see, but we have not seen the rebuilding of infrastructure.
(SOUNDBITE OF BIRD SINGING)
ARRAF: The U.N. says Israel has killed more than 300 people in Lebanon since the ceasefire, with almost half that number civilians. The Irish have served in this mission continuously since UNIFIL was created. Almost 50 Irish peacekeepers have been killed in Lebanon.
(SOUNDBITE OF FOOTSTEPS)
ARRAF: We climb up a UNIFIL observation tower, where a platoon commander, Lieutenant Ciaran Higgins, points out the blue line - the demarcation line between the two countries.
CIARAN HIGGINS: So that dirt track is an Israeli patrol road, and that is Israeli territory.
ARRAF: Israel says UNIFIL is biased against it. Lebanese villagers generally welcome the peacekeepers.
HIGGINS: Your interactions with the locals - they're generally so approachable and friendly because even though they might not know you, they know the flag you wear on your shoulder. And they know how the Irish have treated them.
UNIDENTIFIED PEACEKEEPER #2: (Non-English language spoken).
ARRAF: UNIFIL has protected Lebanese farmers, accompanying Lebanese army patrols watching over olive harvesting to deter Israel from attacking. UNIFIL's mandate ends in a year. It will have another year after that to leave the country. The U.S. says the Lebanese Army should step in and take control. But in this volatile border area, a lot could happen before then.
For NPR News, I'm Jane Arraf with UNIFIL in south Lebanon.
(SOUNDBITE OF PAPA M'S "SAFELESS") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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