These are days when soldiers from the Sassari Brigade are assembling the 500-strong contingent, out of a total of 2,800 blue helmets, to once again lead Operation Leonte under Brigade Commander Andrea Fraticelli. That handover, which should be imminent, is now under attack . Hour after hour, the already heated situation in Lebanon is becoming more complicated by the cross-exchange between Israel and Hezbollah along the Blue Line in southern Lebanon, precisely where UNIFIL soldiers are deployed.
The mission must monitor the implementation of the UN resolution to maintain peace and ensure support and protection for local populations, in a historically unstable area, which is now increasingly so.
The UN spokesperson expressed concern but nevertheless stated that, despite the circumstances , the UN peacekeepers will maintain their positions, as they have done in the past when their security was threatened. Meanwhile, the IDF, the Israeli army, has entered southern Lebanon by land, capturing several nearby positions as part of a plan to strengthen the front's defenses.
Meanwhile, UNIFIL has reportedly asked its non-essential personnel to evacuate their positions in southern Lebanon, following the Israeli raids and the decision to send in ground troops, as reported by the Lebanese newspaper Lorien Lejour. Fear is also growing among Sardinian families.
