Secretary-General appoints Major General Stefano Del Col of Italy as Head of Mission and Force Commander of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL)
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres today announced the appointment of Major General Stefano Del Col of Italy as Head of Mission and Force Commander of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL). Major General Del Col succeeds Major General Michael Beary of Ireland, who will…
In one day Indian peacekeepers vaccinate 1,600 goats in Shab’a
In the mountainous area of Shab’a, in south-east Lebanon, a Lebanese goat farmer welcomes Lt Col Bhupender Bishnoi to his farmstead. Lt Col Bishnoi, a UNIFIL Indian peacekeeper, is the only veterinary officer in his contingent. He and his team are visiting the local farms as part of a vaccination…
New commander of UNIFIL’s French peacekeepers takes charge
UNIFIL’s French-led Force Commander’s Reserve (FCR) got its new commander last week. UNIFIL Force Commander Major General Michael Beary inspected the 12 July transfer of authority from Colonel Olivier Baudet to Colonel Frederic Edel in the French peacekeepers’ main base in Deir Kifa. With 750 French…
Sombre ceremony for fallen Indonesian peacekeeper
In a sombre ceremony today, UNIFIL Head of Mission and Force Commander Major General Michael Beary, fellow peacekeepers and the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) paid their last respects to a fallen Indonesian peacekeeper, who died of medical conditions on Monday. In his remarks at a memorial service in…
Korean peacekeepers organize cultural exchange activities with students
UNIFIL peacekeepers from the Republic of Korea organized a “Design Day” event under the theme “Integration Between Korean and Lebanese Cultures,” in partnership with the Lebanese International University (LIU) in Tyre, earlier this week. During the 17 July event, hosted in LIU’s Tyre campus, 100…
Nepalese peacekeepers organize medical camp
A medical team from UNIFIL’s Nepalese Battalion (NEPBATT) today organized a free medical camp, offering medical support to the needy people in Meiss El Jabel, south-east Lebanon, as part of their humanitarian support to the host communities. During the 3-hour medical camp organized at the local…
As a first, UNIFIL introduces 36-hour patrols
UNIFIL peacekeepers recently started a series of operational activities lasting 36 hours straight as one more step in strengthening the UN mission’s visibility and coordination with the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF). Launched in mid-June by UNIFIL’s Spanish Contingent, the 36-hour patrol includes a…
UNIFIL Head of Mission pays farewell visits to Lebanese leaders
As part of his farewell visits with the Lebanese authorities, UNIFIL Head of Mission and Force Commander, Major General Michael Beary, met today in Beirut with President Michel Aoun and other high-ranking officials. In separate meetings, the UNIFIL head also met with the Caretaker Minister of…
LAF and UNIFIL joint IED training
The soldiers from the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) watch intently as a small unit of UNIFIL Estonian peacekeepers demonstrates the systematic technique to scan for improvised explosive devices (IEDs) while on patrol. The peacekeepers carefully scan the perimeter of a parked vehicle using metal…
UNIFIL Head of Mission Major General Beary Meets with designate PM Hariri on continued farewell calls
U NIFIL Head of Mission and Force Commander Major General Michael Beary today had separate meetings with designate Prime Minister Saad Hariri and members of the diplomatic corps as part of his farewell tour and to update on the work of UNIFIL. During the meeting with Mr. Hariri, Major General Beary…
UNIFIL peacekeepers host 50 children
UNIFIL peacekeepers from the Force Commander Civil-Military Cooperation (FC CIMIC) unit hosted about 50 children in the Indonesian peacekeepers’ main base in Adshit Al Qusayr earlier this month. The children, between 5 and 13 years, came from the nearby town of Marjayoun to interact with UNIFIL…
Tayr Dibbah team beats UNIFIL peacekeepers in friendly football
As part of strengthening their bond with the host population, UNIFIL’s Korean peacekeepers hosted 27 representatives from the town of Tayr Dibbah, including its mayor, Hussein Saad, for a friendly football match in their main base near the south Lebanese town last week. During the 20 July friendly…