Media Home
UN Web TV
UN Audiovisual Library
UN PhotoUN / UNIFIL FORCE COMMANDER
Download
There is no media available to download.
Share
STORY: UN / UNIFIL FORCE COMMANDER
TRT: 4:38
SOURCE: UNIFEED / UNIFIL
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 16 FEBRUARY 2022, NEW YORK CITY / FILE
FILE – UNIFIL - SOUTH LEBANON
1. Wide shot, UNIFIL Head of Mission and Force Commander Major General Stefano Del Col visiting the Maritime task Forces (MTF)
2. Wide shot, UNIFIL Head of Mission and Force Commander Major General Stefano Del Col shaking hands with the Lebanese Navy officer
3. Med shot, UNIFIL Head of Mission and Force Commander Major General Stefano Del Col checking the Lebanese Army ship
4. Med shot, UNIFIL Head of Mission and Force Commander Major General Stefano Del Col on UNIFIL Zodiac
5. Med shot, UNIFIL Head of Mission and Force Commander Major General Stefano Del Col shaking hands with UNIFIL MTF Commander
6. Med shot, UNIFIL Head of Mission and Force Commander Major General Stefano Del Col spekaing with the UNIFIL MTF peacekeepers
7. Wide shot, UNIFIL Head of Mission and Force Commander Major General Stefano Del Col with Lebanese Armed Forces officer during the Vehicle donation to the Lebanese Armed Forces
FILE – NEW YORK CITY
8. Wide shot, UN headquarters exterior
16 FEBRUARY 2021, NEW YORK CITY
9. Wide shot, Major General Stefano Del Col being interviewed
10. SOUNDBITE (English) Major General Stefano Del Col, Head of Mission and Force Commander, United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL):
“We enjoy our presence in the South, and the citizens enjoy the presence of UNIFIL, as a strong peacekeeping mission that maintains and is still maintaining calm and stability in the south of Lebanon - more stability sometimes than calm – since 2006. So, as we say many times, we have a generation of teenagers that are born in 2006 that have never seen the war. And that is the reality. This is a factual reality of what we are doing in the south of Lebanon.”
FILE – UNIFIL – SOUTH LEBANON
11. Med shot, UNIFIL deminer at work
12. Tilt down, UNIFIL female deminer at work
13. Wide shot, arrival of Red Cross ambulance to UNIFIL Hospital
14. Pan right, UNIFIL peacekeepers donating blood to the Lebanese Red Cross
15. Wide shot, UNIFIL peacekeeper teaching students English
16. Wide shot, arrival of the UNIFIL veterinarian to farm
17. Pan right, UNIFIL veterinarian speaking to farmer
18. Various shots, UNIFIL veterinarian administering cowpox vaccination
19. Various shots, Lebanese Armed forces receiving food donation from UNIFIL
20. Med shot, UNIFIL donating medicines to the Lebanese Armed Forces
21. Wide shot, UNIFIL and Lebanese Armed Forces putting boxes of medicines in the Lebanese Armed Forces truck
16 FEBRUARY 2021, NEW YORK CITY
22. SOUNDBITE (English) Major General Stefano Del Col, Head of Mission and Force Commander, United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL):
“He said: ‘why do you say that your dream is the south of Lebanon without UNIFIL?’ Because without a peacekeeping mission, there is a peace process. That is very clear. So, I say, more tourists in the south rather than peacekeepers. But this is a long process because it is not a technical process, it is a political process. So as peacekeepers, we can create the conditions for the discussion, but we cannot substitute the level that is not ours, the level of the diplomacy on the political discussion.”
FILE – UNIFIL - SOUTH LEBANON
23. Various shots, UNIFIL peacekeepers conducting foot patrols
24. Close up, UNIFIL peacekeeper wearing helmet
25. Pan left, UNIFIL peacekeeper giving instruction
26. Various shots, UNIFIL peacekeepers conducting night patrol
27. Close up, UNIFIL peacekeeper on patrol
28. Wide shot, blue barrel
29. Various shots, UNIFIL peacekeepers on patrol
16 FEBRUARY 2021, NEW YORK CITY
30. SOUNDBITE (English) Major General Stefano Del Col, Head of Mission and Force Commander, United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL):
“When you consider yourself an expert on Lebanon or the Middle East have years of working there, is the right time to keep studying the situation in Lebanon and in the Middle East from the medieval [times] because they have a lot of situations that come from the past that still exist.”
FILE – UNIFIL - SOUTH LEBANON
31. Various shots, UNIIFL peacekeepers patrolling blue line
32. Various shots, UNIIFL peacekeepers conducting helicopter patrol
33. Med shot, UNIFIL MTF members on ship
34. Wide shot, UNIFIL ship and Lebanese helicopter during training
35. Wide shot, Air Force helicopter during training
16 FEBRUARY 2021, NEW YORK CITY
36. SOUNDBITE (English) Major General Stefano Del Col, Head of Mission and Force Commander, United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL):
“Keep working with the parties. Respect the resolution. Follow the resolution. Respect the people in the area where we are working, and keep the situation stable in order to allow, as I said before, the political level to discuss.”
FILE – UNIFIL - SOUTH LEBANON
37. Wide shots, guard of honour marching
38. Med shot, UNIFIL Head of Mission and Force Commander Major General Stefano Del Col saluting the guard of honour
39. Med shot, UNIFIL Head of Mission and Force Commander Major General Stefano Del Col saluting
40. Med shot, UNIFIL peacekeepers
41. Med shot, UNIFIL female peacekeeper
42. Med shot, UNIFIL female peacekeepers
43. Wide shot, UNIFIL Head of Mission and Force Commander Major General Stefano Del Col walking to lay a wreath
44. Med shot, UNIFIL Head of Mission and Force Commander Major General Stefano Del Col laying wreath
45. Med shot, UNIFIL Head of Mission and Force Commander Major General Stefano Del Col saluting
Ahead of his departure at the end of February, UNIFIL Force Commander Major General Stefano Del Col said his dream is to see the work of the mission end in South Lebanon “because without a peacekeeping mission, there is a peace process.”
General Del Col said the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) was well integrated into the host communities it serves. As the country faces a deep economic and financial crisis and the effects of COVID-19, among other major crises, he said UNIFIL has been working with municipalities, civil society, and UN agencies to build on quick impact projects to assist communities in the South.
The UNIFIL Force Commander said there was also work being done in a bilateral way by troop contributing countries through what are known as civil military (CIMIC) activities, in order to support the host communities.
General Del Col said, “We enjoy our presence in the South, and the citizens enjoy the presence of UNIFIL, as a strong peacekeeping mission that maintains and is still maintaining calm and stability in the south of Lebanon - more stability sometimes than calm – since 2006. So, as we say many times, we have a generation of teenagers that are born in 2006 that have never seen the war. And that is the reality. This is a factual reality of what we are doing in the south of Lebanon.”
UNIFIL was established in 1978 with Security Council resolutions 425 and 426. The mission was tasked with confirming the withdrawal of Israeli forces from southern Lebanon, restoring international peace and security, and assisting the Lebanese Government in ensuring the return of its effective authority to the area. After the 2006 war, which was ended with the passing of Security Council resolution 1701, UNIFIL was additionally tasked with monitoring the cessation of hostilities among other tasks.
General Del Col said, for UNIFIL to be able to carry out its mandating in monitoring the cessation of hostilities, it must have the freedom of movement to conduct patrols and monitor the area of operations, which extends from the Litani river to the blue line drawn by the United Nations.
The UNIFIL Force Commander noted that one of the most important issues facing the mission is the presence of weapons outside of state control in south Lebanon. He added that these weapons have been used in the recent past to fire at Israel, prompting a response from the Israeli side.
He said the significance of UNIFIL’s presence in this situation is to use its ability to channel messages to the parties in an effort to immediately restore calm and avoid any escalation. General Del Col said escalation is always around the corner and stressed the importance of all parties respecting Resolution 1701.
The Force commander said when asked by a journalist what his dream was, he said his wished to see the south of Lebanon without UNIFIL.
SOUNDBITE (English) Major General Stefano Del Col, Head of Mission and Force Commander, United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL):
“He said: ‘why do you say that your dream is the south of Lebanon without UNIFIL?’ Because without a peacekeeping mission, there is a peace process. That is very clear. So, I say, more tourists in the south rather than peacekeepers. But this is a long process because it is not a technical process, it is a political process. So as peacekeepers, we can create the conditions for the discussion, but we cannot substitute the level that is not ours, the level of the diplomacy on the political discussion.”
Major General Del Col has extensive international operational experience, including in Kosovo, Lebanon and Libya. He has previously served with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) in 2008 as a Battalion Commander and in 2014-2015. In the latter deployment, he served as Commander of Sector West and Italian Contingent Commander.
The UNIFIL Force Commander said his experiences have shown him that the Lebanese are a welcoming people, as the country hosts over a million Syria refugees and 500,000 Palestinian refugees. He said he learned the way to understand the Middle East through a Lebanese perspective.
Del Col said, “When you consider yourself an expert on Lebanon or the Middle East have years of working there, is the right time to keep studying the situation in Lebanon and in the Middle East from the medieval [times] because they have a lot of situations that come from the past that still exist.”
Asked about his message for the incoming Force Commander, the Italian General said, “Keep working with the parties. Respect the resolution. Follow the resolution. Respect the people in the area where we are working, and keep the situation stable in order to allow, as I said before, the political level to discuss.”
General Stefano Del Col is set to end his term as UNIFIL Force Commander and Head of mission on 28 February. He will be succeeded by Major General Aroldo Lázaro Sáenz of Spain.
