The old bell is ringing again !

Removal of U.N. peacekeepers from Egypt ( 1967 )

At 10:00 p.m. on May 16, the commander of United Nations Emergency Force, General Indar Jit Rikhye, was handed a letter from General Mohammed Fawzy, Chief of Staff of the United Arab Republic, reading: "To your information, I gave my instructions to all U.A.R. armed forces to be ready for action against Israel, the moment it might carry out any aggressive action against any Arab country. Due to these instructions our troops are already concentrated in Sinai on our eastern border. For the sake of complete security of all U.N. troops which install OPs along our borders, I request that you issue your orders to withdraw all these troops immediately." Rikhye said he would report to the Secretary-General for instructions. ( Wikipedia )

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UNIFIL - Monitoring cessation of hostilities and helping ensure humanitarian access to civilian population

Originally, UNIFIL was created by the Security Council in March 1978 to confirm Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon, restore international peace and security and assist the Lebanese Government in restoring its effective authority in the area. The mandate had to be adjusted twice, due to the developments in 1982 and 2000.

Following the July/August 2006 crisis, the Council enhanced the Force and decided that in addition to the original mandate, it would, among other things, monitor the cessation of hostilities; accompany and support the Lebanese armed forces as they deploy throughout the south of Lebanon; and extend its assistance to help ensure humanitarian access to civilian populations and the voluntary and safe return of displaced persons.

( UNIFIL's official web site )

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20 Soldiers Depart For Unifil Mission

Brunei-Muara - A total of 20 Royal Brunei Armed Forces (RBAF) personnel is the latest contingent selected to participate in the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (Unifil).

This is the fifth contingent since 2008 where the latest batch of Brunei's troops will be joining soldiers from Malaysia under the command of Malaysian Battalion 3 (MALBATT 3) in the Sector West Lebanon.

The Unifil contingent, deployed in Lebanon, will supervise peacekeeping and security missions in the country.

At the sending off ceremony yesterday morning, Deputy Minister of Defence Dato Paduka Hj Mustappa Hj Sirat handed over the national flag to head of the delegation, Major Hj Abdul Kadir Hj Mahmud.

Besides being an opportunity for RBAF to show Brunei's presence in the UN peacekeeping force, it is also an honour for RBAF to participate in the mission, a Ministry of Defence press release stated.

Major Hj Abdul Kadir said their primary mission was to aid the Lebanese Armed Forces troops in gaining back the confidence of the Lebanon people. He added that his team were aware of the challenges while carrying out their duties there.

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Comment from HERE

Brook (USA) 13-01-2011
There already a Primarily Western UN peace keeping force in southern Lebanon called UNIFIL. There original mandate started in 1978. It has been expanded several times and currently includes close to 13,000 personnel at a cost of half a billion dollars a year. Personally I think peacekeeping missions are a waste of resources and prolong conflict. UNIFIL is a prime example of the failure of UN Peacekeeping Missions Peace cannot be forced on people who do not want it.

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14 Jan 2011

Newspaper close to Hezbollah: UNIFIL reduced its patrols in southern Lebanon.

UNIFIL army patrols reduced the scope of its forces in southern Lebanon following the political crisis in the country - according to the Lebanese newspaper Al - Akhbar which is close to Hezbollah.

Most of the foreign commanders in UNIFIL discussed the matter with diplomats from their countries and officials in Beirut, trying to ensure the security of their forces!

The old bell is ringing again !