Óscar Ruíz 
International Analyst
Should the United Nations leave Lebanon and allow a war without witnesses in the south of the country, or stay and take casualties among its soldiers?
Last month we told in Escudo Digital about the difficulties that this mission of the blue helmets would face as the conflict spread and intensified, and that the main objectives of the UN in Lebanon were already very difficult to carry out. At this point, the question is whether the UN should leave Lebanon and allow an unwitnessed war in the south of the country, or stay and take casualties among its soldiers.
The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) mission has reached its most critical point, marked by increased violence and tensions between the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and Hezbollah. UNIFIL is at a point that truly threatens its ability to continue (safely) on the ground. The incident in Ramyeh, where two Israeli tanks breached a UN base, highlights the increasing vulnerability of the blue helmets deployed in the region, including more than 650 Spanish soldiers.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has publicly called for the withdrawal of UN forces from southern Lebanon, claiming that Hezbollah is using the blue helmets as “human shields”. Although Netanyahu regretted the damage caused to UN soldiers during the latest attacks, his message was clear: UNIFIL’s withdrawal is, in his view, the only way to avoid further incidents. This stance reflects a growing frustration on Israel’s part at what it sees as the mission’s inability to curb the activities of the Shiite militia on the border, which it accuses of not doing enough against Hezbollah attacks.
The incident in Ramyeh, where Israeli troops stayed at a UN base for 45 minutes and destroyed its entrance, is one of several recent attacks that have affected UNIFIL’s integrity. Israel has justified the incident as part of an operation to evacuate wounded soldiers, but the UN has described the entry of the tanks as a deliberate violation of its sovereignty. Despite previous IDF warnings, the peacekeepers have suffered several casualties (only wounded) in recent weeks, raising doubts about the security of the mission.
The blue helmets, whose missions are to monitor the cessation of hostilities following the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah, also preventing Hezbollah militiamen from launching rockets into Israeli territory, are increasingly exposed to a conflict in which their neutrality does not seem to be respected. Attacks on UNIFIL positions have been constant, with explosions affecting its headquarters in Naqoura and direct fire wounding several soldiers. Israeli military operations in southern Lebanon, combined with Hezbollah attacks, greatly complicate the work of the mission, which is caught between the two sides.
History of UN withdrawal
UNIFIL’s current situation is reminiscent of other UN missions that have been forced to draw down or redeploy their forces due to violence on the ground. Examples such as the mission in Syria (UNDOF) in 2014 or South Sudan in 2016 demonstrate that when the security of peacekeepers is compromised, the UN has no choice but to reconsider its presence. In the case of UNIFIL, the difficulty lies in the nature of the conflict, where Hezbollah employs guerrilla tactics and the IDF responds with bombing and direct attacks, complicating the mission’s mandate and its ability to operate effectively.
The future of UNIFIL is very uncertain. While UN Secretary General António Guterres reaffirms that the peacekeepers will remain in their positions, the reality on the ground is increasingly hostile. Withdrawal of the mission, as requested by Netanyahu, could leave a security vacuum that increases violence in the region and the physical disappearance (forever?) of the current Lebanon-Israel border. But continuing with the operation exposes (more and more) the blue helmets to more attacks from both sides, endangering their lives.
The next few days will be decisive for the future of UNIFIL. It seems clear that Israel will not stop attacking Lebanon now and Hezbollah will not stop defending itself, and in between are our soldiers. As we said in the recent article on this mission, the UN must find other objectives closer to the reality of the current war, and without being forced to leave Lebanon, to support with its presence a peaceful and political solution to the eternal Hezbollah-Lebanon-Israel conflict, but, above all, that the 650 Spanish soldiers return home safe and sound.
