UN peacekeeping chief warns of a “security vacuum” as UNIFIL in Lebanon and MINURSO in Western Sahara wind down

The head of UN peacekeeping has warned that the departure of UN forces from Lebanon and Western Sahara risks leaving a dangerous security vacuum, while the Security Council remains split over what, if anything, should follow them. Jean-Pierre Lacroix, Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations, made the remarks to journalists at UN Headquarters in New York on Wednesday, 4 November 2026, the UN said.

Lebanon: roughly 7,500 peacekeepers, with the mandate ending on 31 December

The UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), deployed along the border with Israel since 1978, is due to cease operations at the end of the year. Lacroix said about 7,500 peacekeepers are still serving with the force, which acts as a go-between for the Lebanese and Israeli armies, monitors violations and helps humanitarian aid reach communities in the south.

Lacroix, who has just returned from Lebanon, asked what happens “when there is no longer a third-party presence between the Lebanese army and the Israel Defense Forces”. He said President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam had told him they feared a “security vacuum” once the peacekeepers leave, with nobody left to stop border incidents from turning into clashes. He also raised questions over the future of the Blue Line, the line the UN drew to mark Israel’s withdrawal from Lebanon in 2000.

The humanitarian cost is part of the picture. Lacroix offered a cautious estimate that about 10,000 people are still living between the Blue Line and the forward defence line that Israel has set up inside Lebanese territory, and said their access to aid depends heavily on UNIFIL. Secretary-General António Guterres put forward options in June, but the Security Council has not agreed on any follow-on arrangement, and Lacroix urged its members to decide what form a future international presence could take.

The same concerns have run through earlier Geopolitiki coverage, including Lacroix’s previous visit, reported in UN peacekeeping chief Lacroix in Beirut as UNIFIL’s mandate heads for its 31 December end, and the question of a European role, covered in Lebanon: EU preparing a training mission for the Lebanese army; Kallas: “There cannot be a security vacuum when UNIFIL leaves”.

Western Sahara: the mission has already closed

The precedent Lacroix pointed to is Western Sahara. The UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) shut down on 31 October after 35 years and is now in its liquidation phase, he confirmed. According to the UN, Russia vetoed a United States draft that would have reshaped the mission around a solution based on autonomy under Moroccan sovereignty, while a rival Russian text calling for a one-year renewal fell short of the nine votes needed. MINURSO was set up in 1991 to monitor a ceasefire between Morocco and the Polisario Front; it never held the self-determination referendum it was created for, and hostilities in the territory resumed in 2020. The UN says it is urging the parties to show restraint and remains committed to a political solution providing for self-determination. The background is set out in Western Sahara explained: why the UN mission MINURSO has ended.

Golan, Abyei and the threat from drones

Lacroix also reported on recent visits to Syria and to peacekeepers serving in the Golan. UN observers there, he said, are receiving complaints from civilians about detentions, movement restrictions and property seizures linked to the Israeli military presence, and their mediation has led to several people being released and some property being returned.

In Abyei, the territory disputed by Sudan and South Sudan, recent drone attacks have shown another growing danger, he said: peacekeepers must adapt to technologies that put both their own personnel and the civilians they protect at risk. The UN is reviewing its military and technological capabilities, but Lacroix said the answer cannot be purely technical and is above all a matter of “political responsibility”.

What happens next

With UNIFIL’s mandate ending in under two months, the open question is whether the Security Council can agree on any successor arrangement before 31 December. Lacroix’s appeal to council members suggests no such decision has yet been taken.

Source: UN News report on the briefing by the Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations.