UN votes to end Lebanon peacekeeping mission

TOPSHOT - A convoy of Lebanese army military vehicles drive past a portrait of the late leader of Iran's Islamic revolution, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, at a UN checkpoint manned by Ghanaian peacekeeping forces in the coastal southern Lebanese city of Tyre, 08 September 2006. The UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) is tasked with enforcing a fragile truce between Israel and Hezbollah militants, and supporting the Lebanese army as it takes up positions in southern Lebanon. — Lebanese army military vehicles at a UN checkpoint in Tyre, 2006

(Image credit: Awad Awad /AFP / Getty Images)

What happened

The United Nations Security Council Thursday voted unanimously to wind down its peacekeeping mission in Lebanon by the end of 2026, after nearly five decades of operation. The mandate for the U.N.'s Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), renewed annually since 1978, had been set to expire on Sunday.

UNIFIL, "initially created to oversee the withdrawal of Israeli troops" after Israel's 1978 invasion, has "played a significant role in monitoring the security situation" in southern Lebanon for decades, said The Associated Press. It has also "drawn criticism from both sides" and from the Trump administration, which views UNIFIL as a "waste of money." Israel considers the U.N. force "toothless," The New York Times said, while Hezbollah, the Iran-backed militant group that has "long dominated" southern Lebanon, sees UNIFIL "as sympathetic to Israel."

The Trump administration had "pushed for an end to UNIFIL since taking office in January and has already overseen cuts in U.S. funding to the force," Al Jazeera said. But Lebanon and European governments pushed back against a quick dissolution, arguing that Lebanon's military is not yet ready to take over the area, giving Hezbollah a window to regroup from last year's drubbing by Israel.

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Latest Videos From

Watch full video here:

Explore More

Rafi Schwartz has worked as a politics writer at The Week since 2022, where he covers elections, Congress and the White House. He was previously a contributing writer with Mic focusing largely on politics, a senior writer with Splinter News, a staff writer for Fusion's news lab, and the managing editor of Heeb Magazine, a Jewish life and culture publication. Rafi's work has appeared in Rolling Stone, GOOD and The Forward, among others.