"The Italian contingent of Unifil is a garrison of peace and an operational and effective model, the success factor of which lies above all in the extraordinary ability of the Italian military to interact with all the components of society present in the variegated Lebanese mosaic". This was stated by Jack Christofides, Deputy Head of Mission of Unifil, the United Nations Interposition Force in Southern Lebanon, on the occasion of the meeting in Shama with the "blue helmets" of the Italian contingent led by the "Sassari" Brigade.
The senior UN official was greeted on his arrival by the commander of the West sector, Brigadier General Andrea Di Stasio, and by the deputy commander Brendan Delaney. At the center of the talks, issues related to monitoring the cessation of hostilities and strategic cooperation with the Lebanese armed forces for security and stability in Southern Lebanon, "A social reality in which the Italian contingent is engaged through dialogue and mutual respect"Christofides said, “In the conviction of the centrality of this country as a crucial region for the future of the Middle East in terms of global security”.
On the discussion table also the dynamism and complexity of the civil-military cooperation interventions carried out by the contingent with funds from the Italian Ministry of Defense in direct support of the population and local institutions, taking into due consideration the social, political, cultural environment, religious and economic area of operations that is affected by the political and economic crisis of the entire country, further aggravated by the Coronavirus pandemic.
On the level of reconstruction and development projects, General Di Stasio illustrated the new intervention strategies that the Italian contingent is working on, developed to go beyond the proven mechanism of the balanced distribution of resources among the various communities with a view to need and urgency for the restoration of essential services.
"Ours wants to be a commitment that points to an ever wider involvement of Lebanese civil society in terms of strengthening participatory social development policies that are able to favor the" state "and" capacity building "in the South of the country", Di Stasio specified, referring to the recent initiatives undertaken by Italian peacekeepers in support of minors, women and gender issues, in improving the health service, environmental protection and infrastructures, especially the water network and waste disposal, in the development of the agricultural and rural sector, the protection and enhancement of the cultural heritage.
"An innovative and effective intervention model", Christofides defined it, who if on the one hand aims at an ever greater involvement of local resources and skills capable of generating positive economic effects of the territory, on the other it strengthens security and stability in the area, preventing and reducing possible tensions inside the country and along the border with the state of Israel.
At the end of the meeting, the deputy head of mission of Unifil expressed his appreciation and gratitude to General Di Stasio, to the men and women of the Sector West for the results obtained "in the field", the result of coordination with the Civil Affairs of Naqoura which will make it possible to make a qualitative leap in this joint action, establishing, as proposed by the commander of the Sector West, common operating procedures aimed at an ever better use of the efforts and resources of the Italian Ministry of Defense and those of the United Nations.
New self-sustaining projects to be carried out together with Civil Affairs of Unifil in the main Unions of the municipalities in Southern Lebanon, are studying the Italian contingent in order to launch a virtuous cycle that will boost the local market, boost the employment sector and concrete responses to the primary needs of the population.
