Layout option 1: Grid display, horizontal block, links to media item
In three different incidents in May 2021, rockets were launched from Lebanese territory towards Israel, threatening the relative calm and stability that the area has enjoyed since 2006. UNIFIL Head of Mission and Force Commander Major-General Stefano Del Col describes what happened, and how UNIFIL’s liaison and coordination mechanisms helped ensure the incidents did not escalate into conflict. Here is the link to full story in SoundCloud
There are about 120,000 peacekeepers deployed in conflict zones worldwide. Almost 10 percent of them are in south Lebanon. With their dedication and determination, they are building a peaceful environment in the area. Although permanent and stable peace is yet to be achieved, there is relative calm – South of Lebanon has been enjoying the longest period of it in its modern history. In this episode, we would like to introduce to you two young…
Liaison Branch is part of UNIFIL Liaison and Coordination Mechanism. Its Officers act as the custodians of the Blue Line and as a bridge between the two parties. With officers from 19 different countries, the Liaison Branch creates an independent and impartial mechanism to coordinate between the Lebanese Armed Forces and the Israel Defense Forces, to ensure that the parts of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701 related to military and…
Continuing UNIFIL’s efforts in helping and ensuring the full and effective participation of women in society, Sector East Civil Affairs office conducted a 15-day training for 24 female participants. The aim was to teach local women the basic principles of gardening, grafting, harvesting, and taking care of their own background gardens, to become future potential agricultural producers in their home towns. Here is the link to full story in…
Radar, used to detect and track ships at sea, is an important security tool for countries with extensive maritime borders, like Lebanon.
Commander Thorsten Diekmann, a senior officer in UNIFIL’s Maritime Task Force, says that Lebanese coastal radar will soon be able to see further and survey the country’s territorial waters better, thanks to an agreement between Germany and Lebanon. UNIFIL has an important part to play in the project, through training of Lebanese radar operators.
April 4 of every year is International Mine Awareness Day. Since 2006, UNIFIL has cleared around 4,700,000 square metres of land in south Lebanon and destroyed 43,500 mines, bombs, and unexploded ordnances. This painstaking but necessary work is currently carried out by UNIFIL’s Chinese and Cambodian contingents. Here is the link to full story in SoundCloud .
One of UNIFIL’s priorities is helping to ensure the full, effective, and meaningful participation of women in society. Recently, UNIFIL helped refurbish a vocational training room in Tyre, south Lebanon, where women learn skills in hair dressing and make-up that they can use to earn income. This project aims to give women more independence and a greater voice in their communities. Here is the link to full story in SoundCloud .
After almost a decade-long service with UNIFIL’s Maritime Task Force, assisting Lebanese Navy in securing the country’s vast territorial waters, Brazilian peacekeepers have concluded their mission in Lebanon. The Brazilian MTF flagship, Frigate BRS Independência left Beirut Harbour on 02 December 2020. UNIFIL radio interviewed the outgoing MTF commander, Rear Admiral Sérgio Salgueirinho, who handed over the command to Rear Admiral Axel Schulz of Germany on 15 January 2021.
The head of UNIFIL Civil Affairs, Albagir Adam, says the Mission’s activities aiming at supporting local communities have become even more important in the wake of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. To this end, Mr. Adam adds that $165,000, which is about one third of the UNIFIL fund allocated for various humanitarian projects in 2020, have been spent in community projects dealing with the pandemic. On top of this, many national contingents have…
Layout option 2: Grid display, default layout (no option to show title)
<p style="text-align:start; margin-bottom:11px"><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="line-height:15.4px"><span style="font-family:Calibri, sans-serif"><span style="color:#212121"><span style="font-style:normal"><span style="font-weight:400"><span style="white-space:normal"><span style="text-decoration:none"><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="line-height:16.799999px">More than six months have passed since the exchanges of fire along the Blue Line began. Since then, the lives of thousands of people have changed drastically. The south has witnessed destruction, deaths, injuries, and</span></span><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="line-height:16.799999px"> large-scale dislocation of the population.</span></span><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="line-height:16.799999px"> <span style="color:#212121">And people already facing challenges because of the economic crisis continue to suffer.</span> UNIFIL Chief of Staff </span></span><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="line-height:16.799999px">Brigadier General Cedric du Gardin has seen the immense transformation in south Lebanon after 17 years of unprecedented calm and stability, as this is the fifth time that he has served with UNIFIL.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></p>
<p>In this episode, we will sit down with UNIFIL Spokesperson Andrea Tenenti to bring you the latest updates about recent developments in south Lebanon. He will give us insights into the latest incident involving peacekeepers from the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO), UNIFIL’s continued patrolling activities amid the increase of tension along the Blue Line, as well as the relationship between UNIFIL peacekeepers and the people in south Lebanon since October 8<sup>th</sup>.</p>
<p style="text-align:start; margin-bottom:11px"><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="line-height:15.4px"><span style="font-family:Calibri, sans-serif"><span style="color:#212121"><span style="font-style:normal"><span style="font-weight:400"><span style="white-space:normal"><span style="text-decoration:none"><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="line-height:16.799999px">When the 2006 war ended and the Security Council enhanced UNIFIL’s mandate with resolution 1701, there was a clear need for </span></span><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="line-height:16.799999px">a bridge between Lebanon and Israel,</span></span><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="line-height:16.799999px"> since <span style="color:#333333">they do not talk to each other directly.</span><b> </b><span style="color:#333333">On 11 December of that year, in a Tripartite meeting, a Liaison and Coordination Arrangement was agreed by UNIFIL, the Lebanese Armed Forces and the Israel Defense Forces. Since then, UNIFIL has acted as a mediator between the two sides,</span> and UNIFIL’s Liaison Branch became part of this mechanism. </span></span><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="line-height:16.799999px">Lieutenant General Aroldo Lázaro</span></span><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="line-height:16.799999px">, UNIFIL’s Head of Mission and Force Commander,<span style="color:#333333"> acts as an interlocutor himself and guides the mission’s overall liaison efforts.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="text-align:start; margin-bottom:11px"><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="line-height:15.4px"><span style="font-family:Calibri, sans-serif"><span style="color:#212121"><span style="font-style:normal"><span style="font-weight:400"><span style="white-space:normal"><span style="text-decoration:none"><span style="font-size:14pt"><span style="line-height:19.599998px">Since its establishment in 1978, and then the enhancement of the mission after the 2006 war, the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) has enjoyed a very strong relationship with local communities in south Lebanon. In addition to their operational activities under UN Security Council Resolution 1701, UNIFIL peacekeepers have also been helping the local communities with different kinds of support, including development projects and donations. <span style="color:#212121">With the beginning of the exchanges of fire along the Blue Line on October 8<sup>th</sup>, this support became more urgent as people already facing challenges because of the economic crisis continue to suffer due to the current situation.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></p>
<p><a href="https://on.soundcloud.com/oBu5npDG9UnEWuqy6"><strong><i>Here is the link to full story in SoundCloud</i></strong></a></p>
<p> </p>
<p style="margin-bottom:11px"><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="line-height:105%"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:12.0pt"><span style="line-height:105%">Since the exchanges of fire began on October 8<sup>th</sup>, south Lebanon has gone through enormous transformation and challenges. The 17 years of unprecedented security and stability that the region had enjoyed since 2006 was violently interrupted. Destruction, deaths, injuries, and large-scale population relocation are the current reality. Despite all that, UNIFIL and its peacekeepers remain committed to their mission in pursuit of eventual peace, and to implementing their mandate under UN Security Council Resolution 1701. UNIFIL Head of Mission and Force Commander Lt. General Aroldo Lázaro, who has been working alongside his peacekeeping colleagues each day to prevent a devastating escalation, says the peacekeepers have been operating under difficult conditions since the exchanges of fire along the Blue Line began.</span></span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="margin-bottom:11px"><a href="https://soundcloud.com/unifilradio/peacekeeping-in-a-crisis?si=d10af475…; rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank"><strong><i>Here is the link to full story in SoundCloud</i></strong></a></p>
<p><span style="font-size:12.0pt"><span style="line-height:105%"><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif">Since the 8<sup>th</sup> of October, daily exchanges of fire across the Blue Line have drastically changed the situation in south Lebanon. </span></span></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt"><span style="line-height:105%"><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif">Lieutenant General Aroldo Lázaro, Head of Mission and Force Commander of UNIFIL, the United Nations peacekeeping force in the south, has of course been following developments closely, as the mission works to de-escalate tensions and restore stability to the region. We were able to sit down with him recently to find out what has been happening, the challenges peacekeepers face, and the ways the mission has adapted to continue to implement its mandated tasks under Resolution 1701.</span></span></span></p>
<p><a href="https://soundcloud.com/unifilradio/question-time-with-lt-general-aroldo…; rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank"><strong><i>Here is the link to full story in SoundCloud</i></strong></a></p>
<p>In this episode, UNIFIL Spokesperson Andrea Tenenti sits down with Salam from the South to provide a comprehensive overview of the latest developments in south Lebanon and what the mission is doing to address the current challenges.</p>
<p><a href="https://on.soundcloud.com/EhmHo" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong><i>Here is the link to full story in SoundCloud</i></strong></a></p>
<p>The sounds of the explosions increase as we get closer to the Italian base in Al Mansouri one January morning. The firefights along the Blue Line have grown more intense. When the exchanges of fire are close like this, all UNIFIL personnel, military and civilian, must stay inside UN bases. So, the scheduled patrol by Italian peacekeepers this morning has to wait until the situation gets calmer. After two hours, the patrol gets the permission to start and we accompany them on a patrol in their area of operations, the southernmost area along the Lebanese coast.</p>
<p><a href="https://on.soundcloud.com/r92Xp"><strong><i>Here is the link to full story in SoundCloud</i></strong></a></p>
<p style="text-align:start"><span style="font-size:10pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri, sans-serif"><span style="color:#212121"><span style="font-style:normal"><span style="font-weight:400"><span style="white-space:normal"><span style="text-decoration:none"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12pt"><span style="line-height:1.2">Since the exchanges of fire began along the Blue Line on October 8<sup>th</sup>, UNIFIL peacekeepers have been operating within very different conditions than before. But still, they are performing the mission’s operational activities under UN Security Council Resolution 1701 to restore stability along the Blue Line and prevent the outbreak of a wider and more devastating conflict. Patrolling is a critical part of these operational activities.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="text-align:start"><a href="https://on.soundcloud.com/p2Pak" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank"><strong><i>Here is the link to full story in SoundCloud</i></strong></a></p>
<p style="text-align:start; margin-bottom:11px">On 11 December 2006, in a Tripartite meeting, a Liaison and Coordination Arrangement was agreed by UNIFIL, the Lebanese Armed Forces and the Israel Defense Forces. Lebanon and Israel don’t talk to each other directly, so UNIFIL acts as a mediator. Since October 8th, this mechanism became central to the mission’s work. The two conflicting parties have been communicating with UNIFIL’s Head of Mission and Force Commander, Lt. General Aroldo Lazaro, and the Liaison Branch, to deliver messages to each other. Some of these messages have been of paramount importance, not only to deescalate tensions but also to prevent misunderstandings which could have led to much wider conflict.</p>
<p><a href="https://on.soundcloud.com/3VMPZ" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong><i>Here is the link to full story in SoundCloud</i></strong></a></p>
Layout option 3: Grid display, Vertical card (no option to hide default image)
UNIFIL is striving to support the Lebanese Armed Forces, its strategic partner, through the unprecedented crises as a result of the global COVID-19 pandemic and the socio-economic situation. Recently, the medical facility…
Due to the unprecedented crisis represented by the compounded effect of the global COVID-19 pandemic and the socio-economic crises experienced by Lebanon, UNIFIL extended a helping hand to the Lebanese Red Cross.
Tripartite meetings are very sensitive meetings, so discreet that no recordings are allowed to be made of them. They are the only forum where representatives of the two parties, Lebanon and Israel, who are technically at war…
Since the first United Nations naval peacekeeping force in history was deployed in 2006, UNIFIL’s Maritime Task Force has been providing all possible support to the Lebanese Navy not only in monitoring the Lebanese…
According to UNIFIL Head of Mission and Force Commander, Major-General Stefano Del Col, each young peacekeeper makes a crucial contribution to international peace and security. Each young peacekeeper brings energy and hope to…
Recently UNIFIL handed over one of its positions, near the village of At Tiri, to the Lebanese Armed Forces. This will help support LAF in its deployment in the south, which is crucial to maintaining peace and stability in…