BEIRUT, May 11, 2018 (News Wires) - United Nations peacekeepers in Lebanon said Friday they were keeping a close eye on the southern border with Israel, but the area was "quiet" after strikes on suspected Iranian positions in Syria. The Israeli raids in the early hours of Thursday had prompted concern that Iran's powerful ally Hezbollah could retaliate from its positions in southern Lebanon. "We are monitoring the overall situation, but in relation to our area, the situation has been quiet," said Andrea Tenenti, spokesman for the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL). Tenenti said that the UN force had not increased its patrols in the south, which number around 450 per day. On Thursday morning, Israel carried out unprecedented strikes against what it said were Iranian logistics and intelligence targets in Syria. It said the strikes were in response to rocket fire towards its forces in the occupied Golan Heights, which it blamed on Iran's Quds Force. There was no immediate comment from Hezbollah on the latest Israeli strikes or how it might respond. Set up in 1978, UNIFIL was beefed up after the 2006 war and tasked with guaranteeing a ceasefire and Israeli withdrawal from a demilitarised zone on the border. UNIFIL now has 10,500 troops on the ground, monitoring the truce and helping Lebanese troops secure the borders.
