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Jonathan Shavit

UNIFIL: peacekeepers or aid distributors?

The war between Israel and Hezbollah continues to progress and with that the immense devastation on both sides. Since Israeli ground forces have entered South Lebanon, in a bid to remove the Hezbollah threat from Israel’s borders, several incidents have taken place between UNIFIL and the IDF, with the former accusing the latter of deliberately targeting their positions, while Israel maintains that the force should move out of harm’s way. Therefore, we should ask ourselves what UNIFIL is and what they do?

Mandate renewal and expansion throughout the last 46 years

The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) was established in 1978 and has been present in Lebanon ever since. It has a website which clearly states its mandate:

“According to Security Council resolutions 425 (1978) and 426 (1978) of 19 March 1978, UNIFIL was established to: 

  • Confirm the withdrawal of Israeli forces from southern Lebanon.
  • Restore international peace and security.
  • Assist the Government of Lebanon in ensuring the return of its effective authority in the area.

 According to Security Council resolution 1701 (2006) of 11 August 2006, UNIFIL, in addition to carrying out its mandate under resolutions 425 and 426, shall:

  • Monitor the cessation of hostilities.
  • Accompany and support the Lebanese armed forces as they deploy throughout the South, including along the Blue Line, as Israel withdraws its armed forces from Lebanon.
  • Coordinate its activities referred to in the preceding paragraph (above) with the Government of Lebanon and the Government of Israel.
  • Extend its assistance to help ensure humanitarian access to civilian populations and the voluntary and safe return of displaced persons.
  • Assist the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) in taking steps towards the establishment between the Blue Line and the Litani river of an area free of any armed personnel, assets and weapons other than those of the Government of Lebanon and of UNIFIL deployed in this area.
  • Assist the Government of Lebanon, at its request, in securing its borders and other entry points to prevent the entry in Lebanon without its consent of arms or related materiel.

 By this resolution, the Council also authorized UNIFIL to take all necessary action in areas of deployment of its forces and as it deems within its capabilities, to ensure that its area of operations is not utilized for hostile activities of any kind; to resist attempts by forceful means to prevent it from discharging its duties under the mandate of the Security Council; and to protect United Nations personnel, facilities, installations and equipment, ensure the security and freedom of movement of United Nations personnel, humanitarian workers and, without prejudice to the responsibility of the Government of Lebanon, to protect civilians under imminent threat of physical violence.”

Theory and practice

So, one of UNIFIL’s core objectives is assisting the Lebanese army in making sure that the area between the Litani river and the Blue Line is free of any armed personnel, assets, and weapons that do not belong to the organization itself or the Lebanese government. Since the IDF entered Lebanon, it has become painfully clear that UNIFIL has failed miserably in this task. After numerous weapons caches have been uncovered, not to mention Hezbollah’s own boasting through slick videoclips that show its massive tunnel network, filled with weapons and armed personnel, UNIFIL cannot deny that all of this has happened underneath its very nose – sometimes literally. Recently, a former Danish UN soldier even claimed that reports about daily violations of Resolution 1701 by Hezbollah were ignored by the UN. In fact, practice shows that UNIFIL is mostly busy taking care of the other tasks listed in its mandate. The organization’s website is quite helpful in identifying its core business. When perusing its news archive throughout this year and last, it becomes clear that UNIFIL is mostly concerned with providing humanitarian aid throughout its area of operations in South Lebanon. Granted, it does patrol the Blue Line, as it is supposed to do, but when looking at their website, it becomes clear what UNIFIL is most proud of. Countless articles laud the contributions made by the various contingents of the 50 countries who supply the peacekeepers, which means the distribution of humanitarian aid to the Lebanese population in the war-torn areas. However, even before the war, articles show what UNIFIL busies itself with: Ghanaian peacekeepers providing free dental care, Indian peacekeepers treating livestock, peacekeepers providing education about cholera – there was an outbreak in 2022 – Korean peacekeepers teaching taekwondo to local children, peacekeepers teaching elementary school children about the value of the Blue Line by using the props Mr. And Mrs. Blue Barrel – no, I am not kidding – and Nepalese peacekeepers helping out on a tea farm. While providing humanitarian aid is valuable and necessary for the Lebanese people, it remains odd to see a peacekeeper in military fatigues helping out on a tea farm. The essence of peacekeeping seems to be lost.

The issue with peacekeeping: UNIFIL and UNEF

To be fair, it is not that UNIFIL has not tried to enforce its mandate. Yes, even Antonio Guterres wanted to look at ways to expand UNIFIL’s role in countering the presence of illegal arms and personnel in its area of operations in 2017. The only countries who tried to push UNIFIL to counter Hezbollah’s activities near the Blue Line, a clear violation of resolution 1701, were Israel and the US. But each year, the US was met with opposition from the other Security Council members who wanted to keep the mandate “as is” – among them France. And so, each year the mandate was renewed at the behest of the Lebanese Government – indeed, the Lebanese Government wishes to keep UNIFIL within its borders. Moreover, in 2020 the late bunker dweller Hassan Nasrallah vehemently opposed altering UNIFIL’s mandate.

So, when Israel discovered Hezbollah tunnels that had burrowed into Israeli territory in 2018, the evidence was shown to UNIFIL. For years the mission had denied Israeli allegations that Hezbollah was active along the border. On the face of it, UNIFIL has become a part of the Lebanese fabric and transformed by the Lebanese Government and Hezbollah into something palatable. It is a provider of humanitarian aid, responsible for valuable support to the local population, something the Lebanese state with its broken economy and political deadlock could surely use. UNIFIL is seen as an asset, not a liability in this context. In fact, by transforming itself into an aid supplier first and foremost, UNIFIL is slowly becoming the United Nations Permanent Force in Lebanon. It provides services that support the Lebanese state in caring for a part of its own population that it could not achieve on its own, while Hezbollah can focus on its dream of destroying Israel and helping out dictatorial allies like Bashar al-Assad, when necessary.

The fact is that UNIFIL does not simply relinquish its task of peacekeeping, it seems to have resigned itself to the fact that it is futile and thus has decided to focus on providing aid. When a Dutch peacekeeper was interviewed on Dutch television she talked about the destruction, the difficulties of spending long hours in bunkers, and the warmth of the Lebanese people she had come to know. She proceeded by explaining that the Lebanese did not want this war and that she refused to leave, because she believed in UNIFIL’s mission. Again, what is that mission exactly? It is about humanitarian aid, not peacekeeping.

Could a beefed up, transformed UNIFIL provide the stability both Israel and Lebanon need? Doubtful. This brings me to the failure of UNEF, the peacekeeping force tasked with providing a buffer zone between Israel and Egypt after the Suez Crisis. After spending ten years in the Sinai desert, Gamal Abdel Nasser ordered the peacekeepers to leave and the Canadian contingent immediately, as Canadian historians Norman Hillmer and J.L. Granatstein explain in their book Empire to Umpire. A few hours after the Canadians had left, the Six Day War began and on June 5, fifteen peacekeepers were killed by Israeli forces, unfortunately. The remainder, more than 2,500 peacekeepers, were evacuated via the port of Ashdod. The point is that UNEF was a guest on Egyptian territory and its stay could be revoked, if the Egyptian government wished it. So, as Israeli historian Anita Shapira explains in her book A history of Israel, when Nasser ordered them to leave, Secretary General U Thant immediately complied – there was no legal basis for UNEF to remain. His predecessor, Dag Hammarskjold had rejected an Israeli demand to keep UNEF in Egypt, until peace had been established between the two countries. UNEF was operating through Egyptian goodwill. Therefore, the same applies to UNIFIL. UNIFIL’s mandate is renewed at the behest of Lebanon, the latter and Hezbollah have curtailed the organization’s freedom of movement, making sure that parts of its mandate cannot be executed. UNIFIL has been made to serve Lebanon’s interests, not preserving peace between it and Israel. In addition, there is no progress on reaching a diplomatic solution. Thus, UNIFIL works to provide humanitarian aid, as it cannot and will not do anything else, despite its mandate. But a transformed UNIFIL would not help at all. This would mean that its troop levels would have to be increased, its firepower would have to improve, and it should receive the freedom to operate and fulfil its task of making sure that the area between the Litani and the Blue Line is free from Hezbollah, Hamas, and PIJ. Alas, the minute UNIFIL would try to do this, I believe the Lebanese state would demand its departure. If not, the contributing countries would probably pull their troops out of UNIFIL.

 A diplomatic solution: the only way

So, when I read that Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni called for strengthening UNIFIL’s mission in Lebanon, I shook my head, naturally. The only solution is a diplomatic solution between Israel and Lebanon, which would solve the outstanding issue of the border dispute and create peace akin to the relations Israel has with Egypt and Jordan. However, for this to be accomplished Hezbollah has to give up on its dream of destroying Israel. The chances of this happening are slim to none, which means that true quiet will remain an illusion for the foreseeable future. More aid workers in military fatigues will not bring about this much desired peace. Thus, what Israel already knows the rest of the world should know as well: UNIFIL’s core business is not peacekeeping, but aid distribution.

About the Author
Born in Israel and raised in the Netherlands, I have studied history in the past. Though I still live in the latter, the former continues to amaze, frustrate, encourage, worry, enlighten, and move me. Whenever and wherever, Israel is on my mind.