The United Nations Security Council has voted to pull its peacekeeper force from Lebanon after a 47-year deployment in the Middle Eastern country to secure its southern border shared with Israel.
The council extended the country’s peacekeeping mission for the final time on Thursday. The peacekeepers will gradually withdraw from Lebanon until a final departure date of Dec. 31, 2026.
The Security Council created the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon in March 1978 to ensure Israel’s withdrawal from its northern neighbor. Israel has long criticized the peacekeeping force in Lebanon, saying it has failed to eradicate Hezbollah’s military presence near the border.
The U.S. delegation voiced its support for UNIFIL’s withdrawal on Thursday. U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Dorothy Shea reminded the council that “the
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