The Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) received international support on Tuesday from Britain and the UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon, UNIFIL.
The support comes after a meeting was held with the British Ambassador in Lebanon, Ian Collard, along with the US Ambassador, Dorothy Shea, the Canadian Ambassador, Chantal Chastenay, and the LAF commander, General Joseph Aoun to discuss the report on the implementation of the Security Council resolution.
The report focuses on the security of the Lebanese-Syrian border to secure its entirety and provide support to Lebanon’s security institutions.
Since 2010 the United Kingdom has committed over £84 million (about $112 million) to support the Lebanese Army.
This time, the donation was $1.4 million of Land Rover spare parts for the Land Border Regiments as part of the United Kingdom’s continuing support..
The donations provided are to support the resilience of Lebanon’s official army.
In a statement, British Ambassador Collard said: “I congratulated General Aoun on the positive role that the Lebanese Army Forces continues to play in safeguarding the country, as the sole legitimate defender of Lebanon’s people.”
“Lebanon is experiencing an unprecedented crisis and the Lebanese Armed Forces are pivotal to ensure stability and safety for all citizens.”
In addition, the donations from UNIFIL included basic necessities and supplies to optimize the capabilities of the army and keep it in smooth operation.
As part of this support, the army received 500kg of medical supplies and 25,000 liters of fuel as part of the first of six monthly shipments agreed on by the UN Security Council’s decision.
The decision is dated back to August where the UN committed to taking special, temporary measures to support the LAF through medicine, food, fuel, and logistics over a sixth-month period.
The first shipment will be completed after the distribution of a food shipment that is equivalent to a single daily meal for 27,000 people.
The Republic of Korea UNIFIL battalion also donated 10 armored vehicles as part of a cooperative agreement between both the Korean and the Lebanese armies.
The Korean peacekeeping also renovated the military dispensary emergency wing in Tyre.
In a statement, General Maroun Hobayati, acting as a representative for army commander Joseph Aoun, said: “This renovation provided a notable improvement to the level of health care received by military personnel and their families.”
