In a wooded valley close to the Israeli border, United Nations peacekeepers showed AFP journalists a Hezbollah bunker they had uncovered in southern Lebanon, a former bastion of the militant group.

The UN Security Council voted on Thursday to end the mission of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) in 2027, with the peacekeeping force facing US and Israeli opposition.

The peacekeepers, first deployed in 1978, have recently been working with the Lebanese army to enforce a November ceasefire that followed more than a year of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah.

The Lebanese group was badly weakened and, as part of the ceasefire deal, is required to withdraw from south Lebanon.

"This morning we conducted a recce in this valley that we identified as... of valuable interest" because it was hit by the Israeli military during the conflict, said Captain Tanguy, commander of the French reconnaissance and intervention troops, on Wednesday.

The site, on the outskirts of the village of Meri, was hidden among trees and accessible only on foot via a rough mountain........

© Al Monitor