In southern Lebanon, Spanish peacekeepers caught in the crossfire

On the border between Lebanon and Israel, in a war zone deserted by its inhabitants, Spanish peacekeepers have been under crossfire from the Israeli army and Hezbollah for more than ten months.

“Sometimes we have to take cover because of the bombing (…) in our position and even in the bunkers,” says Álvaro González Gavaldá, a soldier with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).

To reach the Spanish contingent's base 964, AFP journalists escorted by UNIFIL passed through villages that had been virtually deserted by their inhabitants.

A few shops, a grocer or a garage, are still open along the road and fields are charred, the result, according to the Lebanese authorities, of Israeli phosphorus bombings, which Israel denies.

The base, surrounded by barbed wire, is close to the border town of Khiam, where dozens of homes have been destroyed or damaged, according to AFP journalists.

On the other side of the wall marking the border, the Israeli town of Metulla, also empty of its inhabitants, can be seen with the naked eye.

A Spanish peacekeeper from the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), in southern Lebanon, on August 23, 2023 © AFP – ANWAR AMRO

From an observation tower, the peacekeepers observe through binoculars the Golan Heights, occupied and annexed by Israel, the target of frequent bombardments from Lebanon.

“Our mission in Lebanon, in accordance with United Nations Resolution 1701, is to control the area, to help the Lebanese government and the Lebanese armed forces take control of the region south of the Litani,” explains Lieutenant Colonel José Irisarri.

This resolution, which had confirmed the end of the war between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006, stipulates that only peacekeeping forces and the Lebanese army be deployed between the border and the Litani River.

– Essential role –

But since the beginning of the war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip on October 7, the Lebanese movement has opened the southern Lebanese front with Israel.

The pro-Iranian movement claims to act in solidarity with its Palestinian ally, Hamas.

“Some villages are completely empty. No one lives there because of the risks and constant attacks,” deplores Lieutenant Colonel Irisarri.

Spanish peacekeepers from the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) in southern Lebanon on August 23, 2023 © AFP – ANWAR AMRO

As the risks of violence escalating into all-out war grow, the role of UN peacekeeping forces on the Israeli-Lebanese border is “more important than ever,” UN peacekeepers chief Jean-Pierre Lacroix recently told AFP.

He stressed that these forces are “the only channel of liaison between the Israeli side and the Lebanese side” in an attempt to contain the violence.

UNIFIL's mandate expires at the end of August and Lebanon has requested its renewal.

Since October, violence has left more than 600 dead in Lebanon, mostly Hezbollah fighters but also at least 131 civilians, according to an AFP count.

In Israel and the occupied Golan, 23 soldiers and 26 civilians have been killed, according to Israeli authorities.

Several peacekeepers have been injured since the start of the violence.

– Aid to the population –

Spanish peacekeepers from the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) at their base in southern Lebanon on August 23, 2023 © AFP – ANWAR AMRO

The Spanish contingent of UNIFIL has around 650 soldiers spread across several positions, out of a total of 10,000 peacekeepers in Lebanon.

The Spanish soldiers are not limited to their mission, and are supporting the local population, explains Lieutenant Colonel Irisarri.

For example, “our team of psychologists is helping a special education school to accommodate children with special needs,” he says.

The visit that AFP journalists were due to make to this centre on Friday was cancelled, the security level having been raised by the Spanish peacekeepers due to the exchanges of fire in the south of Lebanon.

At least eight people, a child and seven Hezbollah fighters, were killed in Israeli strikes on the region that day, according to the Lebanese authorities and the pro-Iranian group.

Spanish peacekeepers from the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) at the gym in their base in southern Lebanon on August 23, 2023 © AFP – ANWAR AMRO

A statue of the Virgin Mary has been installed in the middle of the base. The Spanish soldiers, who have adopted two dogs, have few leisure activities. “When we have free time, we go to the gym (..) and watch movies,” says Álvaro González Gavaldá.

Arriving in Lebanon last May, he admits that “we miss our families, but so far we have the internet and we talk to them almost every day.”

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