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Lebanon: The UN peacekeepers helping communities who’ve stayed behind
The killing of three UN peacekeepers in south Lebanon in the past two days has highlighted the grave dangers for the 10,000 military personnel who make up the bulk of UNIFIL, the UN Interim Force in Lebanon – and for the communities caught up in intense clashes between the Israeli military and Hezbollah fighters.
“It's extremely volatile, extremely dangerous, and you know, we see the situation for us as peacekeepers, also for the civilians who remain in certain areas, because there are civilians who have chosen to stay and peacekeepers are supporting them in any way that we can,” said UNIFIL spokesperson Kandice Ardiel.
This help involves coordinating and delivering humanitarian aid, she explained, speaking from the force’s headquarters in Naqoura, southwest Lebanon.
Peacekeepers have also assisted in relocating civilians to safer areas upon request and continue to conduct patrols to monitor the situation and provide reassurance to those who remain.
Battleground
During our interview with Ms. Ardiel, gunfire could be heard in the background.
An estimated 2,000 villagers still live close to the Blue Line that separates Israel from Lebanon.
“These villages are obviously in a very difficult position. They're increasingly cut off from the rest of Lebanon, and they're having a hard time getting supplies,” Ms. Ardiel explained. “So, there are agencies that are helping to bring food, medicine, and hygiene supplies to them in the south, and UNIFIL is helping to coordinate their movements to ensure that they can safely get to the places where they need to go.”
In addition to recording rocket and missile fire across the Blue Line, the UN mission has reported Israeli troop movements in southern Lebanon and frequent violations of UN Security Council Resolution 1701 – a critical UN Security Council text adopted in 2006 that calls for a full cessation of hostilities.
Read our Resolution 1701 explainer here:https://news.un.org/en/story/2024/10/1155221
“We've seen a great deal of Israeli incursions into South Lebanon in different areas, including near our headquarters in Naqoura,” Ms. Ardiel said. “About a week ago and in recent days, we witnessed very violent battles that we could hear taking place.”
Peacekeeper commitment
Ms. Ardiel emphasized that, unless the Security Council mandate to UNIFIL changes, peacekeepers are determined to stay and continue their mission: “It's not the first time, unfortunately, that one of our positions has suffered harm, attack, and damage because of the ongoing violence.”
Point of impact
UNIFIL’s headquarters has been visibly damaged by bullets, shrapnel and rockets, while Israeli military operations have been observed across multiple areas, in Naqoura and further east.
“This is, of course, a violation of Resolution 1701. Every projectile that is fired, every bullet, these are also violations, coming from both sides on a constant basis,” the UNIFIL spokesperson stressed.
“It is extremely dangerous for peacekeepers to operate at the moment,” Ardiel concluded, “but this is something we are doing to help protect civilians who choose to remain in South Lebanon.”
STORY: Lebanon update - UNIFIL
TRT: 4’38”
SOURCE: UNTV CH
RESTRICTIONS: For B-roll please credit UNIFIL
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH/NATS
ASPECT RATIO: 16:9
DATELINE: 31 MARCH 2026 GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
1. Exterior wide shot: Palais des Nations, Flag Alley.
2. SOUNDBITE (English) – Kandice Ardiel, spokesperson UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), from Naqoura - Lebanon: “Peacekeepers continue to remain here in South Lebanon, despite the challenging and very dangerous situation, as we've seen. It's not the first time, unfortunately, that one of our positions has suffered harm and attack and damage because of the ongoing violence that we've seen.”
3. Wide shot of the UNIFIL Force Commander’s Reserve peacekeepers patrolling in UNIFIL area of operations in the South of Lebanon, 31 January 2026. Please credit UNIFIL.
4. SOUNDBITE (English) – Kandice Ardiel, spokesperson UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), from Naqoura - Lebanon: “I'm just hearing gunfire outside, as we're giving this interview. I mean, this is the situation here in South Lebanon. It's extremely volatile, extremely dangerous, and you know, we see the situation for us as peacekeepers, also for the civilians who remain in certain areas, because there are civilians who have chosen to stay and peacekeepers are supporting them in any way that we can in terms of getting humanitarian aid, to them through humanitarian agencies, through our liaison and coordination mechanisms.”
5. Wide shot of the destruction in South Lebanon, filmed by the UNIFIL Force Commander's Reserve peacekeepers patrolling in UNIFIL area of operations in the South of Lebanon, 31 January 2026. Please credit UNIFIL.
6. SOUNDBITE (English) – Kandice Ardiel, spokesperson UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), from Naqoura - Lebanon: “We've seen a great deal of Israeli incursions into South Lebanon in different areas, including near our headquarters in Naqoura, where about a week or so ago, in past days, we had some very violent battles that we could hear taking place. Our headquarters here was impacted by bullets, by shrapnel. Rockets even impacted, in our headquarters, so it was a very dangerous and volatile situation.”
7. Wide shot of the UNIFIL Force Commander's Reserve peacekeepers patrolling in UNIFIL area of operations in the South of Lebanon. 31 January 2026. Please credit UNIFIL.
8. SOUNDBITE (English) – Kandice Ardiel, spokesperson UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), from Naqoura - Lebanon: “We've seen Israeli presence, of course, moving in different parts of the area of operations, not just around Naqoura, including in the east, and peacekeepers continue to monitor and report what is happening, but certainly there is a huge presence of Israeli forces here in South Lebanon. This, of course, is a violation of Resolution 1701, and every projectile that is fired, every bullet that is fired, these are also violations of 1701 that are coming from both sides on a constant basis.”
9. Wide shot of aid coming being distributed to a school turned as a refugee centre in Tyre by UNIFIL, 23 March 2026. Peacekeepers and Lebanese soldiers escorted a convoy with 2.5 tons of food and care products to Tyre, where tens of thousands of people still live. Please credit UNIFIL.
10. SOUNDBITE (English) – Kandice Ardiel, spokesperson UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), from Naqoura - Lebanon: “We don't have our own estimates, but we've heard that there are a few thousand people in villages that are near the Blue Line who have chosen to remain. And so, these villages are obviously in a very difficult position. They're increasingly cut off from the rest of Lebanon, and they're having a hard time getting supplies. So, there are agencies that are helping to bring food, medicine, and hygiene supplies to them in the south, and UNIFIL is helping to coordinate their movements to ensure that they can safely get to the places where they need to go.”
11. Medium shot of peacekeepers helping discharge a truck full of aid to be distributed to the Lebanese refugees in Tyre, 23 March 2026. Peacekeepers and Lebanese soldiers escorted a convoy with 2.5 tons of food and care products to Tyre, where tens of thousands of people still live. Please credit UNIFIL.
12. SOUNDBITE (English) – Kandice Ardiel, spokesperson UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), from Naqoura - Lebanon: “We have also, as peacekeepers, helped communities who have requested it to relocate people to safer areas, if they would like to leave their villages, but find themselves in a position where they can't go safely. So we've been facilitating that as well, and peacekeepers are also conducting patrols just to monitor the situation and provide some reassurance to the people that we're there, that we're doing what we can, even though the situation is extremely difficult, and it is extremely dangerous for peacekeepers to operate at the moment, but this is something that we're doing in order to help protect the civilians who choose to remain in South Lebanon.”
13. Wide shot of peacekeepers helping discharge a truck full of aid to be distributed to the Lebanese refugees in Tyre, 23 March 2026. Peacekeepers and Lebanese soldiers escorted a convoy with 2.5 tons of food and care products to Tyre, where tens of thousands of people still live. Please credit UNIFIL.
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