(JNS) The United States backs Israel’s demands for significant changes to the U.N. peacekeeping mission in southern Lebanon, UNIFIL, whose mandate is up for renewal at the end of August.

During a closed meeting of the United Nations Security Council meeting this week, U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Kelly Craft is reported by AP to have said, “The U.S. has long reiterated publicly and privately that the status quo in Lebanon is unacceptable. Now is the time to empower UNIFIL, end the long complacency and enable the mission to fully achieve what it was set out to accomplish.”

Craft reportedly said at the time that UNIFIL was being “prevented from fulfilling its mandate,” and that the Lebanon-based terrorist organization Hezbollah had “been able to arm itself and expand operations, putting the Lebanese people at risk.”

She said the Security Council “must either pursue serious change to empower UNIFIL or realign its staffing and resources with tasks it can actually accomplish.”