The Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirms that an evacuation plan for Lebanon is already in place, but it does not provide details, but guarantees that it will be implemented as soon as it is considered necessary depending on the evolution of events.
Official sources from the Foreign Ministry have stressed the announcement of this plan made by the head of Spanish diplomacy, José Manuel Albares, from New York, where he is accompanying the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, to various events on the occasion of the UN High Level Week.
The situation in Lebanon is considered by the sources cited to be very worrying because it shows that the escalation that was being warned about in the Middle East has already begun and there is no sign of it stopping. Right now, the death toll has exceeded 500 and the number of wounded, 1,600, all in the Arab country.
Given this serious and alarming situation, they have insisted that Spain has an evacuation plan prepared, which – they stress – is not in place and will only be activated when it is considered necessary, but they have avoided offering details in this regard.
However, in the most affected area, in southern Lebanon, the military participating in the the UN peacekeeping mission in the country, UNIFIL (or UNIFIL, if we take its acronym in English), where its work is especially recognized. The Minister of Defense, Margarita Robles, has said that the troops are in “high morale” and have transmitted “calm” to her. However, their external patrols have been suspended and they remain in bunkers, for security.
There are currently 650 Spanish soldiers deployed with UNIFIL, who are dedicated to monitoring southern Lebanon on the so-called ‘blue line’, on the border between the two countries, to monitor the ceasefire between the parties ordered by the United Nations, which is constantly violated by both adversaries.
Transfer to Beirut of the coffin of the Cordoba soldier Pedro Serrano Arjona, who died during the UNIFIL mission in August 2022.
The Defense Department has indicated that Robles speaks “practically daily” with the head of the contingent, General Guillermo Pablo García del Barrio, and has confirmed that the Spanish soldiers are currently only carrying out “essential” tasks, given the tension in the area. Currently, Lieutenant General Aroldo Lázaro Sáenz, a Spaniard, has been leading the entire global mission since February.
The command of this Force denied yesterday that it had received any order or recommendation for evacuation from Israel in view of the escalation of violence. “The information circulating is not true. The mission is still active and deployed in southern Lebanon. All 10,500 members of the peacekeeping mission from 49 different countries “They are still present and operational in southern Lebanon,” UNIFIL spokesman Andrea Tenenti told the Lebanese daily The Orient-The Day.
In recent hours, reports have been circulating on social media claiming that the Irish contingent deployed in southern Lebanon had been ordered by the Israeli Armed Forces to evacuate to Cyprus. In total, UNIFIL is made up of some 10,500 soldiers, including 650 Spanish soldiers, historically one of the largest blocs.
Last August, Spain celebrated the unanimous renewal of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701 by which the mandate of the Peacekeeping Mission in Lebanon is renewed, a process that must be carried out year after year. “UNIFIL is essential in the current scenario of increased regional tension. Spain contributes with the deployment of troops in southern Lebanon, in support of the stability of the country and the region,” said the ministry headed by Robles.
The UN mission was established in 1978 and revived in 2006, following the 34-day war between Hezbollah and Israel, to monitor the unofficially agreed land border between Israel and Lebanon. Spain has been participating in this deployment since 2006. As part of Operation Libre Hidalgo, Spanish soldiers have been stationed in the eastern sector of the mission, a mini-Lebanon where a Shiite majority coexists with Christian and Druze communities.
Its objectives on paper are to “confirm the withdrawal of Israeli forces from southern Lebanon; restore international peace and security; and assist the Government of Lebanon in ensuring the return of its effective authority in the area.” And its essential tasks, by mandate, are:
- Monitor the cessation of hostilities.
- Accompany and support the Lebanese armed forces in their deployment throughout the south, including along the Blue Line, as Israel withdraws its armed forces from Lebanon.
- Coordinate the activities referred to in the previous paragraph with the Government of Lebanon and the Government of Israel.
- Extend its assistance to help ensure humanitarian access to civilian populations and the voluntary and safe return of displaced persons.
- Assist the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) in taking steps to establish, between the Blue Line and the Litani River, a zone free of all armed personnel, assets and weapons other than those of the Government of Lebanon and UNIFIL deployed in that area.
- Assist the Government of Lebanon, at its request, in securing its borders and other points of entry to prevent the entry into Lebanon without its consent of arms or related materiel.
According to the UNThe mission maintains “an intense level of operational and other activities” amounting to approximately 14,500 per month, “day and night,” in the area of operations. Seventeen percent of these activities are carried out jointly with the Lebanese Armed Forces. It is also complemented by a Maritime Task Force comprising five ships.
Source: www.huffingtonpost.es
