The Diplomat
The Minister of Defense, Margarita Robles, held yesterday a meeting by videoconference with the Spanish contingent deployed in the United Nations mission in Lebanon (UNIFIL) in order to “inquire about the incidents that occurred during the past days of Holy Week, an escalation of tension that has subsided and has allowed the return to normal activity,” according to the Ministry.
During the conversation, Robles expressed her “pride, recognition and gratitude, also for their families, of the Spanish contingent” and highlighted “the Spanish presence in Lebanon and the role of the head of UNIFIL”, Spanish General Aroldo Lázaro.
During her videoconference interview with Brigadier General Melchor Marín, head of the Multinational Brigade of Sector East, the Minister inquired about “the situation of the troops right now and how they lived the 18 hours they had to spend inside the shelters of the Miguel de Cervantes base, which has 21 bunkers with a capacity for 2,000 people”.
General Marin, who commands a total force of 3,500 military personnel from nine countries. 500 military personnel from nine countries and is in command of the 670 Spanish military personnel of the King Alfonso XIII Brigade of the Legion (BRILIB XXXVIII relief), integrated in the Multinational Brigade, explained to Robles how the attacks of last April 6, Holy Thursday, took place, with the launching of approximately 30 projectiles, some of them rockets, from Gaza and southern Lebanon towards Israel, five of which hit targets and caused two light injuries, triggering an Israeli response with bombardments on positions in the Gaza Strip.
He also reported that the reaction of the Multinational Brigade was to cancel all operational activities in the 25 positions it controls and to order to shelter its personnel in the different shelters, which was done “in a few minutes”, and assured the Minister that the situation “at this moment is stable and calm” and that “the morale of the contingent is high”.
The Israeli army bombed several targets of the Palestinian Hamas movement in southern Lebanon last Friday in response to a barrage of shells on northern Israel, the largest such attack since the war against the Lebanese Shiite group Hezbollah in the summer of 2006. Israel holds Lebanon “responsible for any attack emanating from its territory.” UNIFIL has assured that neither side is interested in a war.
Since Monday, the UNIFIL command has ordered to increase the number of deterrence operations against future or possible rocket launches, in coordination with the Lebanese Armed Forces “who are the first interested in their territory not being used for hostile activities”, said the head of BRILIB during his conversation with Robles.
Likewise, the general explained that although “the situation is stable and calm”, at the same time “it is volatile”. He also recalled that these incidents have occurred in a “sensitive period such as the month of Ramadan”, which has not yet ended. “We have great professionals who know how to do their job,” Marin assured.
Following instructions from UNIFIL headquarters in Naqoura, all routine civil-military activities began on Monday, which are basically interviews with the sector’s personalities (from religious leaders, civilians to teachers and businessmen), who at this time “perceive the situation calmly and somehow understand and appreciate the effort of the BRILIB”, according to General Marin. For his part, the Chief of Defense Staff, Admiral General Teodoro López Calderón, urged the contingent to “reinforce all security now and until the end of the deployment”, scheduled for one month from now.
Spain has been participating in the UNIFIL (United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon) mission since 2006, with the aim of maintaining international peace and security and helping the Lebanese government to re-establish its authority in the area. The head of the mission and commander of the UNIFIL Force is Spanish Major General Aroldo Lázaro Sáez since February 2022, leading some 10,000 blue helmets from 45 countries. The United Nations Security Council approved Resolution 2650 on August 31, 2022, extending the mission’s mandate for another year.
