The United States and Israel agreed that the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon must cease its operations in southern Lebanon, The Jerusalem Post confirmed Sunday, following reports.The American administration has decided not to renew UNIFIL’s mandate, and Israel reportedly “did not try to convince them otherwise.”The vote on the mandate in the United Nations Security Council is expected to occur within a few months.What is UNIFIL?UNIFIL was created in 1978 following the First Lebanon War, founded with the intention of confirming Israel’s withdrawal from Lebanon – as well as assisting the government with restoring authority in the area.After the Second Lebanon War, UNIFIL’s mandate was extended to monitor hostilities in the region and ensure humanitarian access to local civilian populations.UNIFIL currently has over 13,000 uniformed personnel, and its top military contributor is Indonesia.No officials from the United States, Israel, or the UN have addressed the announcement.

Israel’s military said it was targeting an underground drone facility in southern Beirut on Thursday, in one of its largest strikes on Hezbollah assets since a cease-fire was agreed to in November.The military said Hezbollah’s aerial unit was producing thousands of drones with help and funding frin Iran.

Israel said Friday it would continue striking Lebanon until Hezbollah is disarmed, a day after carrying out its heaviest bombardment yet of south Beirut. The escalation is a violation of the US-brokered ceasefire that began in November.