The new commander of the United Nations peacekeeping force in Lebanon arrived in the country on Monday to take control of the mission charged with maintaining calm between Israel and Hizbullah.
Italian Maj.-Gen. Claudio Graziano is succeeding Maj.-Gen. Alain Pellegrini of France as head of the U.N. Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) after he was selected by U.N Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon earlier this month.
Also, the second and final batch of 184 Qatari soldiers arrived in Lebanon to join UNIFIL on Monday, bringing the number of the force’s peacekeepers up to more than 12,000. Qatar is the first Arab state to serve in the 28-nation strong force.
UNIFIL was set up in 1978 to monitor the border between Israel and Lebanon. The force was beefed up in the wake of the war between Israel and Hizbullah last summer.