Excellency,

I am writing to share a list detailing instances in January of 2015 in which Lebanon violated Security Council resolution 1701 and breached Israeli sovereignty. As outlined in this and previous letters that I have sent, Lebanese violations of the Blue Line are highly visible and occur almost daily.  Nonetheless, the Secretariat consistently excludes the vast majority of violations from its reports.  This silence emboldens Hezbollah and its Iranian patron to continue violating Security Council resolutions and further destabilize the region.

On 28 January 2015, Hezbollah terrorists fired anti-tank missiles from Lebanon at an IDF patrol in Israel, killing two soldiers and injuring seven others.  Hezbollah immediately claimed responsibility for the attack. 

One would have thought that in light of this clear admission of guilt, the Security Council would finally condemn the Hezbollah terrorist organization.  The Council, however, refuses to be dissuaded by facts.  It was a full week before the Security Council issued a statement that did not condemn Hezbollah, did not name Hezbollah, and did not denounce the murder of two Israeli soldiers. 

Israel will not accept any attacks on its territory and it will exercise its right to self-defense and take all necessary measures to protect its population and territory.  Members of the international community must act with a collective purpose to prevent a dangerous escalation.  Hezbollah must be disarmed and the Government of Lebanon must abide by its international commitments and fully implement Security Council resolution 1701. 

I should be grateful if you could circulate this letter to the members of the Security Council and have it used as an official document of the Council.  I wish to inform you that an identical letter has been sent to H.E. Mr. Ban Ki-Moon, Secretary-General of the United Nations.

Please accept, Excellency, the assurance of my highest consideration.

Yours truly,

Ron Prosor

Ambassador

Permanent Representative

 H.E. Mr. Liu Jieyi

President of the Security Council

United Nations

New York