Beirut, Lebanon - January 21, 2025 A spokesman of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) on Tuesday highlighted the fragile situation in southern Lebanon, citing the presence of Israeli forces in the region, as he cautioned against a return to conflict as Israel's 60-day deadline to withdraw from Lebanese territory approaches its end. Israel will maintain its forces in southern Lebanon beyond the Sunday deadline stipulated in the ceasefire agreement with Hezbollah, the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on Friday. The agreement, signed on Nov 27, 2024, mandated a complete Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon within 60 days, concluding this Sunday. Andrea Tenenti, the spokesman, stated that the current situation in southern Lebanon remains extremely volatile and fragile, with violations of the ceasefire agreement occurring every day. The Israeli military's actions of firing and detonating explosives in southern Lebanon violate UN Resolution 1701. UNIFIL hopes that all parties will adhere to the ceasefire agreement to facilitate the deployment of the Lebanese army. "So far, the Lebanese army had been able to move to several locations. We have been doing this working coordination with them, moving into this location together with UNIFIL and then taking over all disposition. That's the work of 1701 to support the Lebanese army. But so far, we are still far from full withdrawal of IDF from the south of Lebanon. Many villages and many areas are still under occupation," Tenenti said. Referring to the soon-to-end ceasefire agreement between Lebanon and Israel, Tenenti stated that UNIFIL is actively involved in monitoring meetings concerning the implementation mechanism of the ceasefire agreement, with the ultimate goal of achieving a permanent ceasefire. He emphasized the importance of resolving any outstanding issues within the 60-day time frame through diplomatic means, in order to prevent conflict from arising. "The experience and the drama of the last 15 months is very clear with everyone, especially for the people in the region in the south of Lebanon and across the Blue Line on the Israeli side. So, no one wants to go back to this conflict. So, it's important that if something doesn't work out after the 60 days, there will be again a discussion at the political level to find a solution and not to go back to the situation we just witnessed dramatically and tragically for many months," Tenenti said. With over 10,000 personnel from 48 nations, including China, UNIFIL is a significant international presence, and Tenenti praised the Chinese peacekeepers for their outstanding service. "The work of the Chinese contingent has been spectacular from the moment that they'd been stepping inside the mission area. The work is mainly engineering work, so the demining at the moment is a very needed work because the areas in south Lebanon is full of unexploded ordinance and landmines and requires a lot of work in order to demine these areas. And the work of the Chinese contingent has been very meticulous and is very appreciated by everyone because clearing this area is a dangerous job. It's important work and they'd been doing this work for many years with a great dedication and professionalism," he said. The video shows: FILE: Beirut, Lebanon - Nov 2024 1. Smoke billowing from buildings FILE: Masnaa, Lebanon - Nov 7, 2024 2. Various of destroyed vehicle Beirut, Lebanon - Jan 21, 2025 3. SOUNDBITE (English) Andrea Tenenti, spokesman United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL): "So far, the Lebanese army had been able to move to several locations. We have been doing this working coordination with them, moving into this location together with UNIFIL and then taking over all disposition. That's the work of 1701 to support the Lebanese army. But so far, we are still far from full withdrawal of IDF from the south of Lebanon. Many villages and many areas are still under occupation." FILE: Beirut, Lebanon - Oct 3, 2024 4. Various of debris, destroyed vehicles 5. Various of people; debris, Lebanese national flag Beirut, Lebanon - Jan 21, 2025 6. SOUNDBITE (English) Andrea Tenenti, spokesman United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) (ending with shot 7): "The experience and the drama of the last 15 months is very clear with everyone, especially for the people in the region in the south of Lebanon and across the Blue Line on the Israeli side. So, no one wants to go back to this conflict. So, it's important that if something doesn't work out after the 60 days, there will be again a discussion at the political level to find a solution and not to go back to the situation we just witnessed dramatically and tragically for many months." FILE: Beirut, Lebanon - Dec 2024 7. Various of traffic; damaged buildings, debris Beirut, Lebanon - Jan 21, 2025 8. SOUNDBITE (English) Andrea Tenenti, spokesman United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL): "The work of the Chinese contingent has been spectacular from the moment that they'd been stepping inside the mission area. The work is mainly engineering work, so the demining at the moment is a very needed work because the areas in south Lebanon is full of unexploded ordinance and landmines and requires a lot of work in order to demine these areas. And the work of the Chinese contingent has been very meticulous and is very appreciated by everyone because clearing this area is a dangerous job. It's important work and they'd been doing this work for many years with a great dedication and professionalism." FILE: Beirut, Lebanon - Nov 30, 2024 9. Various of buildings FILE: Jerusalem - April 2019 10. Various of Israeli Knesset, Israeli national flag [Restrictions: No access Chinese mainland]