Lebanon is intensifying diplomatic efforts ahead of the expiration of the UN peacekeeping mission’s mandate in South Lebanon at the end of the year, fearing a security vacuum that could undermine its internationally recognized southern border, deprive it of independent documentation of Israeli violations and isolate residents of Christian villages in the Bint Jbeil district.
The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) announced that its mandate would expire on December 31, under UN Security Council Resolution 2790, after which it would begin a phased withdrawal.
Diplomatic sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that the full withdrawal would take several months, with peacekeepers leaving their positions gradually rather than evacuating all three operational sectors - western, central and eastern - simultaneously. The aim is to avoid leaving entire areas without an international presence.
Lebanon’s concerns are compounded by Israel’s continued occupation of parts of the South following its advance deeper into Lebanese territory between March and June 2026 during the latest war with Hezbollah.
During that period, the Lebanese Army gradually withdrew from dozens of positions south of the Litani River, redeploying to unoccupied areas north of the virtual Yellow Line imposed by Israel that remain within UNIFIL’s area of operations.
Border markers and international monitoring
Security sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that the consequences of UNIFIL’s departure would extend beyond the immediate security situation. A principal concern is the potential loss of border markers that UNIFIL and the Lebanese Army have worked to establish since the Blue Line was identified in 2000.
The sources warned that the absence of international observers could encourage Israel to intensify violations of Lebanon’s internationally recognized border, which Israel accepted under the 1949 Armistice Agreement.
UN peacekeepers are currently the only international witnesses in occupied areas, they explained, where Lebanese state institutions, including the army and security forces, are absent amid widespread displacement and destruction.
“The only witness today in the occupied area is the United Nations force,” the sources said, describing UNIFIL as a credible international witness and a longstanding source of support for Lebanon.
Its presence allows Israeli actions and attacks to be independently documented and recorded at the United Nations, preserving an international account of the conflict that Lebanon fears losing.
“Amid Israeli claims, international accounts and documentation cannot be called into question,” the sources stressed.
They also recalled UNIFIL’s role since 2006 in assisting the Lebanese Army’s deployment south of the Litani River and supporting legitimate state institutions.
According to the sources, the mission has fulfilled its obligations under Security Council Resolution 1701, with 45 countries contributing to those efforts over the past two decades.
Christian villages face growing isolation
The sources warned that withdrawing UNIFIL without replacing it with another UN mission or internationally backed force would leave Lebanon “at the mercy of the Israeli hyena,” alone in confronting Israel.
The repercussions would be particularly severe for hundreds of families who have remained in occupied areas, including residents of the three Christian villages of Rmeish, Debel and Ain Ebel in Bint Jbeil district.
Residents currently rely on UNIFIL escorts when traveling through occupied areas toward the Lebanese interior. Beyond those areas, they continue under the protection of both UN peacekeepers and the Lebanese Army until reaching territory north of the Litani River. Without UNIFIL, they would have to navigate Israeli security procedures on their own.
The sources revealed that Israel had rejected a Lebanese proposal to establish a safe corridor allowing residents to travel freely to and from their villages under Lebanese security escort.
The proposed route would have passed through Tebnine toward Beit Yahoun and Ain Ebel, providing access to communities surrounded by Israeli-occupied territory.
Lebanon also fears losing what remains of the international framework governing security arrangements in the south.
The trilateral talks between Lebanon and Israel under UN auspices in Naqoura were discontinued, followed by the termination of a five-party mechanism that included France and the United States, was chaired by a US general and convened at UN headquarters in Naqoura.
Lebanese concerns now extend to the possibility that the United States, as guarantor, could declare its mission complete, leaving Beirut to deal directly with Israel - an arrangement the Lebanese government rejects. Lebanon and Israel are technically in a state of war and have no diplomatic ties.
UNIFIL currently maintains some 36 permanent military positions south of the Litani River. Security sources fear Israeli forces could occupy some of these sites or destroy others following the peacekeepers’ departure.
The mission also conducts hundreds of patrols daily. Before the 2024 war, it carried out as many as 410 patrols a day across its area of operations.
In its statement, UNIFIL stressed that peacekeepers from 45 countries would continue their regular activities throughout South Lebanon until the mandate expires.
These include monitoring and reporting developments, liaising with the parties, supporting the Lebanese Army and facilitating humanitarian operations.
Diplomatic push for an alternative
Lebanese diplomatic efforts to secure an alternative international presence are continuing ahead of UNIFIL’s departure.
President Joseph Aoun has repeatedly warned of the dangers of a security vacuum and welcomed the deployment of any international force capable of helping maintain stability in the south.
On Friday, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri reaffirmed Lebanon’s position during a meeting with EU Ambassador Sandra De Waele.
He stressed that Resolution 1701 remains the legal guarantee of Lebanon’s right to recover all its territory up to its internationally recognized borders, while UNIFIL provides the operational framework for implementing the resolution in full.
Lebanon has proposed expanding the mandate of certain UN observers, but Israel rejected the suggestion.
