Lebanon’s president Joseph Aoun has urged the 15-member United Nations Security Council to renew the mandate of the organisation’s peacekeeping force, Unifil, which is deployed along that country’s border with Israel.
The council is set to vote by Monday, August 25th, as Unifil’s mandate expires at the end of the month.
Unifil is composed of 10,500 troops from 47 countries, including Ireland which has contributed 348 peacekeepers to today’s force.
Opposition to renewal has been expressed by Israel and the US. Washington could, however, agree to a final one-year renewal and use its veto as a permanent council member to enforce disbandment of the force in a year’s time.
READ MORE
Anticipating the US stand, the French draft resolution proposes an extension until August 31st, 2026, while maintaining the council’s “intention to work on a withdrawal of Unifil with the aim of making the government of Lebanon the sole provider of security in southern Lebanon”. The text also calls for the government to take control of “all Lebanese territory” and reach an agreement on a “comprehensive political arrangement”.
Last November’s truce ended fighting between Israel and Hizbullah, which mounted strikes on Israel after it launched its war on Gaza following the October 7th, 2023, attack on southern Israel by Hamas. Since then, more than 4,000 Lebanese people, the majority Hizbullah fighters, and 46 Israeli civilians and 87 security forces personnel have been killed.
Despite the call for total evacuation under the truce, Israel continues to occupy five “strategic” sites in south Lebanon and to conduct near-daily air strikes across the country.
Hizbullah has been compelled to withdraw from the border zone and is resisting pressure to disarm after the government decreed that the state’s army must be the sole bearer of arms.
Unifil was created in 1978 when Israel attacked Lebanon and occupied territory in the south to halt cross-border raids by Palestinian fighters. The initial force was made up of 4,000 troops and was increased as circumstances demanded.
[ Ireland seeks to safeguard UN mission in Lebanon where 340 Irish troops serveOpens in new window ]
Unifil survived unrest during Lebanon’s 1975-90 civil war as well as constant challenges along the border with Israel.
In 1982, the Israeli army bypassed Unifil positions when waging war on Lebanon and attacking Beirut. After partial withdrawal, it continued to occupy a wide belt of territory along the border.
Unifil survived the 18-year campaign mounted by Hizbullah which in 2000 drove Israeli forces from Lebanon. The peacekeeping force has weathered subsequent violence while providing protection and humanitarian aid to civilians in the south.
Since Unifil’s foundation, Ireland has provided 30,000 troops and suffered 48 fatalities, the largest number of any contributor. The most recent fatality was Pte Sean Rooney, who was shot while travelling in a convoy which mistakenly drove through a southern Lebanese village that was not in Unifil’ s area of operations.
