The head and commander of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), Major General Diodato Abagnara, said Saturday that it is essential to ensure that other UN agencies and the Lebanese army are capable of taking over the tasks currently carried out by the force before its withdrawal begins at the end of this year.
Abagnara spoke from southern Lebanon, at one of UNIFIL’s positions monitoring hostilities in the region, a role the force has carried out for nearly 50 years.
Since a new war erupted between Israel and Hezbollah in March, UNIFIL has also provided security monitoring for humanitarian aid convoys heading to residents of a small group of towns in southern Lebanon that have become surrounded by Israeli forces. Residents across much of the rest of southern Lebanon have been displaced by Israeli strikes and evacuation orders.
The UN Security Council has instructed UNIFIL to begin withdrawing by the end of 2026, raising concerns over the continued delivery of humanitarian aid and how the force’s positions will be transferred to the Lebanese army.
“There are other UN entities here in the south, so it is extremely important for us to ensure a very smooth transition to other entities or pave the way for a future mission,” Abagnara said.
He added that UNIFIL is already working with the UN team for Lebanon to ensure humanitarian assistance reaches areas under Israeli control, while sharing information with the Lebanese army about “sensitive areas and how it can manage the situation.”
Abagnara acknowledged that handing over some UNIFIL positions to the Lebanese army could be “very difficult,” given that more than half of the force’s positions are located in areas currently controlled by Israeli forces.
Diplomats fear that UNIFIL’s departure could leave the United Nations without its “eyes and ears” in southern Lebanon.
Abagnara described demolition operations as “another violation” of UN Security Council resolutions concerning Lebanon. The Israeli military says it is destroying Hezbollah infrastructure across southern Lebanon.
As a U.S.-backed plan under which the Lebanese army would disarm Hezbollah and extend state control over southern Lebanon remains stalled, diplomatic efforts are accelerating to address the gap that UNIFIL’s withdrawal would create.
Lebanon wants the force’s mandate to be extended, while other countries are discussing the possibility of forming a new multinational mission. However, it remains unclear what mandate such a mission would have.
Abagnara said extending UNIFIL’s mandate would be “a great honor,” but added that if the Security Council does not adopt a new resolution, the force will have to end its operations at the end of the year.
“This is not a long period… The UN presence in the south is extremely important, and for me, it is more important today than ever before,” he said.
Source: Reuters
