S/2017/148 - Letter from Israel in reaction to the statements made by the Secretary-General of Hezbollah threatening Israel's critical infrastructure.

United Nations
Security Council

S/2017/148

Distr.: General
21 February 2017
Original: English

Identical letters dated 17 February 2017 from the Permanent Representative of Israel to the United Nations addressed to the Secretary-General and the President of the Security Council

I am writing to draw your attention to outrageous statements made by the head of Hezbollah, an internationally recognized terrorist organization.

As reported yesterday, Hassan Nasrallah, the Secretary-General of Hezbollah, publicly threatened Israel's critical infrastructure, declaring "We will hit the ammonia tank wherever it is ... the ship that will come through the sea and load the ammonia to all the areas represents five nuclear bombs".

This is the second time within a year that Hezbollah has issued such a threat. In 2016, Nasrallah declared that Hezbollah would carry out an attack on Haifa's ammonia storage tanks, which would "lead to the death of tens of thousands of residents and 800,000 Israelis

The gravity of this threat is magnified by Hezbollah's ongoing militarization of the towns and villages of southern Lebanon, in clear violation of Security Council resolution 1701 (2006). Every day, new evidence emerges that Hezbollah is actively increasing its military capabilities. In the same statement on 16 February, Nasrallah boasted that "We always have things to hide, and what we have hidden will surprise you, it will change the course of any war ..."

Nasrallah's most recent threat is particularly alarming in the light of the destabilizing statement made this week by the President of Lebanon, Michel Aoun, expressing support for Hezbollah's arms build-up. This statement demonstrates that the Lebanese Government is not only failing to fulfil its obligations under Security Council resolution 1701 (2006), but is actively encouraging and legitimizing Hezbollah's activity, which clearly violates the resolution.

This statement comes only a few days after the adoption of a Security Council resolution stressing the need to address the danger of terrorist attacks against critical infrastructure.

Silence is not an option in the face of such severe threats from terrorist organizations against a Member State.

I call on the Security Council to publicly condemn this dangerous and aggressive statement and to demand that the Government of Lebanon uphold its commitments and fully implement Security Council resolution 1701 (2006).

I should be grateful if you would have the present letter distributed as a document of the Security Council.

(Signed) Danny Danon
Ambassador
Permanent Representative

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21Feb17

Letter from Israel in reaction to the statements made by the Secretary-General of Hezbollah threatening Israel's critical infrastructure