Fall 2017 JPI

unanimously adopted the renewal of UNIFIL II’s mandate until August 2018. 50 The UNSC’s 15-
member body has supported the hybrid peace governance between the Lebanese state and foreign
countries. This geostrategic region will continue to anticipate the national interests of UNSC members
towards the conflict, using the region as a proxy to fight Lebanon’s neighbors. The continuation of
UNIFIL II as a relationship of external powers will lead Lebanon to depend on international foreign
aid. The military presence of UNIFIL has gradually been strengthened since 2000, rising from 2,000
troops to 15,000 troops in 2017, and the continuation of the PKOs maritime task force. 51 Resolution
2373 tackles Lebanese local authorities as an important ingredient to be considered in the coming
projection of power. 52 Proportionality between the involvement of local actors and the inclusion of
foreign powers is imperative if there is ever to be a durable ceasefire and a long-term solution in
Lebanon through a PKO.
However, Lebanon’s protection under the auspices of the UN also recalls the myriad ways in
which the local population deals, subverts, and adapts to the process of hybrid peace governance in
post-conflict environments. The existing gap between the intra-Lebanon conditions and its regional
and international challenge regarding peace and security, will not be solved until Hezbollah is adroitly
countered. 53 Foreign countries’ tendency to label Hezbollah as a terrorist group contradicts the
perspective of Lebanon’s local population towards Hezbollah as “a group that garnered 88 percent of
the Shiite vote and, in conjunction with its allies, 54 percent of the popular vote in the 2009 election.” 54
Hezbollah’s presence was further reinforced when President Michel Suleiman ended his term on May
2014 and a new crisis ensued over the presidential succession. 55 After two years of a political vacuum,
the firm ally of Hezbollah, Michel Aoun, assumed the presidency of Lebanon in October 2016. 56 The
advent of the election was primarily the persistence of the powerful Shiite groups, but also to the
gradual weaknesses of political adversaries, led by the Sunni leader Saad Hariri. The next round of
elections has been called for May 2018, allowing citizens to vote for the first time since 2009. The
results will surely have a direct impact on the way UNIFIL II will continue to operate. The election
of a leader supported by Hezbollah will ultimately bolster Iran’s pursuit of hegemony in a region that
maintains close ties with Saudi Arabia.
CONCLUSION
UN political ideals of freedom, equality, and the defense of human rights for all members of
society and all societies have not been attained in Lebanon’s geographical and social conflicts.
Lebanon’s case ultimately inhibits critical thinking about the political reality and fundamentals of
PKOs. The enhanced mission in Lebanon is a traditional heritage operation with some particularities:
more robust ROEs and the complexity of being a European-led operation in the Middle East. The
constellation of Lebanon’s dilemma needs to be linked to the scope of globalization and the premises
of foreign-directed state-building within this scope, which favors the deployment of UNIFIL II as a
50 “Middle East” (S/RES/2373), United Nations. Approved August 30, 2017. Accessed December 10, 2017.
http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/atf/cf/%7B65BFCF9B-6D27-4E9C-8CD3-CF6E4FF96FF9%7D/s_res_2373.pdf
51 “Approved resources for peacekeeping operations for the period from 1 July 2016 to 30 June 2017” (A/C.5/70/24), United Nations General
Assembly. Approved June 22, 2016. Accessed December 10, 2017. http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/C.5/70/24
52 “Middle East” (S/RES/2373), United Nations. Approved August 30, 2017. Accessed December 10, 2017.
http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/atf/cf/%7B65BFCF9B-6D27-4E9C-8CD3-CF6E4FF96FF9%7D/s_res_2373.pdf
53 Marie-Joëlle1 Zahar, “Norm Transmission in Peace- and Statebuilding: Lessons from Democracy Promotion in Sudan and Lebanon,” Legal Source,
EBSCOhost. Global Governance 18, no. 1 (2012): 73.
54 Ídem, Pg 80.
55 Waleed Hazbun, “The Politics of Insecurity in the Arab World: A View from Beirut,” PS: Political Science & Politics 50, no. 3 (2017): 656-659.
56 Ídem.
JPI Fall 2017, pg. 34