Major General Diodato Abagnara, Head of Mission and Force Commander of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), stated on Saturday that ensuring other UN agencies and the Lebanese Army are prepared to assume the peacekeeping force’s duties is critical before UNIFIL begins its planned withdrawal at the end of the year. Speaking in southern Lebanon from a UNIFIL site that has monitored regional hostilities for nearly 50 years, Abagnara highlighted the operational challenges facing the mission. Since the outbreak of renewed war between Israel and Hezbollah in March, UNIFIL has also provided security escorts for humanitarian aid convoys delivering supplies to residents in a small cluster of southern Lebanese towns currently encircled by Israeli forces, while residents across much of the surrounding region have faced forced displacement due to Israeli airstrikes and evacuation orders. Following a UN Security Council directive ordering UNIFIL to initiate its withdrawal process by the end of 2026, concerns have intensified regarding the continuation of humanitarian aid distribution and the logistics of transferring peacekeeping positions to the Lebanese Armed Forces. 'There are other UN entities here in the south, so what is vital for us is executing a very smooth transition to other entities or paving the way for a future new mission,' Abagnara stated. He added that UNIFIL is actively coordinating with the UN country team for Lebanon to secure ongoing humanitarian relief in areas under Israeli control, while sharing critical intelligence with the Lebanese Army concerning 'sensitive zones and how they can manage the situation.' However, Abagnara acknowledged that handing over certain UNIFIL positions to the Lebanese military could prove 'extremely difficult,' given that more than half of these sites are currently situated within territories controlled by Israeli forces. Diplomats have expressed growing concern that UNIFIL's departure will leave the United Nations without its 'eyes and ears' in southern Lebanon. Abagnara also described ongoing demolitions in the area as 'another violation' of UN Security Council resolutions pertaining to Lebanon, while the Israeli military maintains that it is dismantling Hezbollah infrastructure across the south. As a U.S.-backed plan for the Lebanese Army to disarm Hezbollah and assume total control of southern Lebanon stalls, diplomatic efforts are accelerating to address the security vacuum that UNIFIL’s departure threatens to create. While Lebanon continues to advocate for an extension of UNIFIL's mandate, several nations are debating the establishment of a new multinational force, though its precise authority and mandate remain uncertain. Abagnara noted that an extension of UNIFIL’s mandate would be a 'great honor,' but clarified that without a new UN Security Council resolution, the mission will be forced to conclude its operations at year's end. 'That is not a long time,' Abagnara remarked. 'The presence of the United Nations in the south is crucial, and to me, it is more important today than ever before.'
Major General Diodato Abagnara, Head of Mission and Force Commander of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), stated on Saturday that ensuring other UN agencies and the Lebanese Army are prepared to assume the peacekeeping force’s duties is critical before UNIFIL begins its planned withdrawal at the end of the year. Speaking in southern Lebanon from a UNIFIL site that has monitored regional hostilities for nearly 50 years, Abagnara highlighted the operational challenges facing the mission. Since the outbreak of renewed war between Israel and Hezbollah in March, UNIFIL has also provided security escorts for humanitarian aid convoys delivering supplies to residents in a small cluster of southern Lebanese towns currently encircled by Israeli forces, while residents across much of the surrounding region have faced forced displacement due to Israeli airstrikes and evacuation orders. Following a UN Security Council directive ordering UNIFIL to initiate its withdrawal process by the end of 2026, concerns have intensified regarding the continuation of humanitarian aid distribution and the logistics of transferring peacekeeping positions to the Lebanese Armed Forces. 'There are other UN entities here in the south, so what is vital for us is executing a very smooth transition to other entities or paving the way for a future new mission,' Abagnara stated. He added that UNIFIL is actively coordinating with the UN country team for Lebanon to secure ongoing humanitarian relief in areas under Israeli control, while sharing critical intelligence with the Lebanese Army concerning 'sensitive zones and how they can manage the situation.' However, Abagnara acknowledged that handing over certain UNIFIL positions to the Lebanese military could prove 'extremely difficult,' given that more than half of these sites are currently situated within territories controlled by Israeli forces. Diplomats have expressed growing concern that UNIFIL's departure will leave the United Nations without its 'eyes and ears' in southern Lebanon. Abagnara also described ongoing demolitions in the area as 'another violation' of UN Security Council resolutions pertaining to Lebanon, while the Israeli military maintains that it is dismantling Hezbollah infrastructure across the south. As a U.S.-backed plan for the Lebanese Army to disarm Hezbollah and assume total control of southern Lebanon stalls, diplomatic efforts are accelerating to address the security vacuum that UNIFIL’s departure threatens to create. While Lebanon continues to advocate for an extension of UNIFIL's mandate, several nations are debating the establishment of a new multinational force, though its precise authority and mandate remain uncertain. Abagnara noted that an extension of UNIFIL’s mandate would be a 'great honor,' but clarified that without a new UN Security Council resolution, the mission will be forced to conclude its operations at year's end. 'That is not a long time,' Abagnara remarked. 'The presence of the United Nations in the south is crucial, and to me, it is more important today than ever before.'
Major General Diodato Abagnara, Head of Mission and Force Commander of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), stated on Saturday that ensuring other UN agencies and the Lebanese Army are prepared to assume the peacekeeping force’s duties is critical before UNIFIL begins its planned withdrawal at the end of the year. Speaking in southern Lebanon from a UNIFIL site that has monitored regional hostilities for nearly 50 years, Abagnara highlighted the operational challenges facing the mission. Since the outbreak of renewed war between Israel and Hezbollah in March, UNIFIL has also provided security escorts for humanitarian aid convoys delivering supplies to residents in a small cluster of southern Lebanese towns currently encircled by Israeli forces, while residents across much of the surrounding region have faced forced displacement due to Israeli airstrikes and evacuation orders. Following a UN Security Council directive ordering UNIFIL to initiate its withdrawal process by the end of 2026, concerns have intensified regarding the continuation of humanitarian aid distribution and the logistics of transferring peacekeeping positions to the Lebanese Armed Forces. 'There are other UN entities here in the south, so what is vital for us is executing a very smooth transition to other entities or paving the way for a future new mission,' Abagnara stated. He added that UNIFIL is actively coordinating with the UN country team for Lebanon to secure ongoing humanitarian relief in areas under Israeli control, while sharing critical intelligence with the Lebanese Army concerning 'sensitive zones and how they can manage the situation.' However, Abagnara acknowledged that handing over certain UNIFIL positions to the Lebanese military could prove 'extremely difficult,' given that more than half of these sites are currently situated within territories controlled by Israeli forces. Diplomats have expressed growing concern that UNIFIL's departure will leave the United Nations without its 'eyes and ears' in southern Lebanon. Abagnara also described ongoing demolitions in the area as 'another violation' of UN Security Council resolutions pertaining to Lebanon, while the Israeli military maintains that it is dismantling Hezbollah infrastructure across the south. As a U.S.-backed plan for the Lebanese Army to disarm Hezbollah and assume total control of southern Lebanon stalls, diplomatic efforts are accelerating to address the security vacuum that UNIFIL’s departure threatens to create. While Lebanon continues to advocate for an extension of UNIFIL's mandate, several nations are debating the establishment of a new multinational force, though its precise authority and mandate remain uncertain. Abagnara noted that an extension of UNIFIL’s mandate would be a 'great honor,' but clarified that without a new UN Security Council resolution, the mission will be forced to conclude its operations at year's end. 'That is not a long time,' Abagnara remarked. 'The presence of the United Nations in the south is crucial, and to me, it is more important today than ever before.'
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UNIFIL: Handing Over Certain Positions to Lebanese Army Could Be "Extremely Difficult"
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