We and our partners do the following data processing based on your consent: store and/or access information on a device, personalised advertising and content, advertising and content measurement, audience research and services development Middle East live: Paris talks aim to bolster Lebanese army as end of UN mission looms A Lebanese army vehicle entering the southern village of Zawtar Al Gharbieh, in July 2026. © Mohammed Zaatari, AP file photo European and Arab military chiefs meet in Paris on Thursday to discuss steps to bolster Lebanon's struggling armed forces as the mandate of a United Nations peacekeeping mission expires at the end of the year,amid fears of a renewed Israeli military campaign in southern Lebanon. Follow our live coverage for updates from the Middle East. Today's meeting in Paris will centre on preparing the ground for a donor conference, likely to be held in late 2026 or early 2027 It will also focus on the situation in southern Lebanon and plans for an international presence there after the mandate of the UN peacekeeping force known as UNIFIL expires at the end of the year.
The most immediate concern is how to fill the security vacuum that could be left when UNIFIL, which has about 7,500 personnel, begins drawing down from January. Lebanon's cash-strapped army is caught between the Israeli military — now occupying much of southern Lebanon — and Hezbollah. The Iran-backed militant group has refused calls to give up its weapons.
The heads of state of Lebanon, France and Jordan will be meeting in Paris shortly as part of an effort to drum up support for the struggling Lebanese military. A donor conference for Lebanon's army was initially set to take place in February, led by France, Saudi Arabia and the United States. However, it was postponed following the eruption of the Iran war and the latest round of the Israel-Hezbollah war.
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