The mandate for UNIFIL, the United Nations peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon, is set to expire at the end of the year. International and domestic support for a continued peacekeeping presence remains, according to reporting from Beirut, but any replacement force would reportedly involve fewer troops and form part of a wider regional agreement.
UNIFIL Mandate Nears Expiry Amid Uncertainty Over Replacement Force in Southern Lebanon
The mandate for UNIFIL, the United Nations peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon, is set to expire at the end of the year. International and domestic support for a continued peacekeeping presence remains, according to reporting from Beirut, but any replacement force would reportedly involve fewer troops and form part of a wider regional agreement.
UNIFIL's mandate dates to 1978, during the Lebanese civil war. The force has been criticized by multiple parties for not fully implementing UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which was adopted 20 years ago. That resolution calls for Israeli troop withdrawal behind the Blue Line — the de facto border between Israel, Lebanon, and the occupied Golan Heights — deployment of the Lebanese Armed Forces to southern Lebanon, and disarmament of Hezbollah south of the Litani River.
Lebanese political scientist Imad Salamey told Al Jazeera that implementing such an arrangement requires Lebanese state authority and a monopoly over arms, Israeli withdrawal, respect for Lebanese sovereignty, and Iranian non-interference in Lebanese affairs. He said international forces can monitor and support peace but cannot substitute for domestic and regional agreement.
Salamey also noted that UNIFIL was not established with powers to forcibly impose Resolution 1701, and that its mandate has been limited to monitoring, reporting, coordination, and assisting the Lebanese Armed Forces. Enforcement of disarmament or compelled withdrawal, he said, falls outside the authority UNIFIL was given.
Analysts have said the decision not to extend UNIFIL's mandate followed the United States adopting the Israeli position opposing the mission, reportedly to allow Israeli military operations in Lebanon without a monitoring body present.
Israel and Lebanon reached a framework agreement on June 26, establishing so-called pilot zones from which Israeli forces would withdraw and the Lebanese Army would take control and oversee Hezbollah's disarmament. UNIFIL has no role in the pilot zones. The International Crisis Group's senior Lebanon analyst, David Wood, told Al Jazeera that the US and Israel have clearly sidelined UNIFIL under the latest arrangement, and that UNIFIL no longer holds a seat on the ceasefire monitoring mechanism.
Wood said the exclusion reflects shared US and Israeli skepticism about UNIFIL's effectiveness, but noted that UNIFIL has in the past helped de-escalate standoffs between Lebanese and Israeli forces, citing a gunfire incident during implementation of the Zawtar al-Gharbiyeh pilot zone. He said UNIFIL could resume a mediation and monitoring role as a short-term measure.
Regarding a replacement force, two European diplomats told Al Jazeera their countries were in discussions about contributing peacekeepers to whichever mission succeeds UNIFIL. One proposal would see the UN Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO) step in, though it would be considerably smaller than UNIFIL, which had approximately 7,000 personnel as of June 2026, down from a peak of about 15,000. In June, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres presented the Security Council with three options ranging from 900 to 3,000 troops.
Wood warned that if the Security Council allows a gap to develop between the end of UNIFIL's mandate and the creation of a new force, that gap could prove very difficult to fill. Salamey said replacing UNIFIL with UNTSO, a multinational force, or a European force would make little difference without a broader political settlement.
- The source does not establish the specific date UNIFIL's mandate expires beyond 'the end of the year'
- The source does not establish the total number of people killed in the conflict it references since 2023
- The source does not establish the full terms or text of the June 26 framework agreement
- The source does not identify the two European countries whose diplomats spoke to Al Jazeera
- The source does not establish whether the Security Council has taken any vote or formal action on UNIFIL's mandate
- The source does not establish Iran's stated position on the peacekeeping arrangements
- The source does not establish Hezbollah's stated position on the pilot zones or disarmament
- The source does not establish which of the three UN Secretary-General proposals is favored by Security Council members
- The source does not establish the outcome or current status of the direct Lebanon-Israel talks described as US-brokered
Read the original at Al Jazeera English