On board ship Saint Mark, anchored in the port of Beirut, the closing ceremony of the “Amphibious Recon” (Basic, Advanced and Train The Trainers) and Amphibious Fire Support courses took place, organized by the Italian Bilateral Military Mission in Lebanon (MIBIL) and the Mobile Training Team of the “San Marco” brigade of the Navy.
Among the authorities present at the ceremony were the counselor of the Italian Embassy in Lebanon Roberta di Lecce, the commander of the MIBIL Colonel Angelo Sacco, the commander of the ship "San Marco" captain Marco Stocco, the Chief of Training of the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) Brigadier General Alì Bou Hamdan and the commander of the Marine Commandos Regiment Brigadier General Bassem Al-Ayyoubi.
The final event of the two courses was particularly significant, as it is the first of its kind to take place on board an Italian military ship.
The occasion of the passage from Beirut of one of the symbolic units of the Navy's amphibious capacity was favorable for sealing the cooperation between the two countries in the field of training.
The intense training activity, which lasted 5 months, was conducted by the Mobile Training Team of the "San Marco" brigade who operated embedded in the Lebanese unit, training 39 soldiers and bringing the total of Marine Commandos trained by MIBIL to over 400 starting from 2018.
During the Amphibious Recon course, participants developed knowledge and skills of infiltration at medium and long distances, of planning and conducting reconnaissance and information acquisition activities, of insertion with the helo cast and rigid hull inflatable boat (RHIB) cast techniques.
With the activities linked to the Amphibious Fire Support course, the attendees developed knowledge on planning, acquiring and securing an observation point, acquiring and reporting sensitive information, coordinating fire support and adjusting fire.
All activities carried out in the operational theater are conducted under the coordination and according to the directives given by the Joint Forces Operational Command (COVI), which is the High Defense Command responsible for the planning, coordination and direction of military operations and national joint exercises and multinationals and their related activities.
