Spain begins new activity in Lebanon: contributing to the training of its Armed Forces

• Following an invitation from France, a team of Spanish military instructors has begun the first training course on searching for and locating improvised explosive devices for their Lebanese counterparts

Spain reinforces its commitment to Lebanon and begins a new activity in the country: training the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF), within the framework of the activities of the Military Technical Committee for Lebanon (MTC4L). In this context, and after receiving an invitation from France, a Mobile Training Team (MTT) - made up of five Spaniards from the 16th Canary Brigade - has begun to give a combined military tactical-level course at the Sadhiye military base in Sidon, which is expected to last six weeks and will focus on searching for and locating improvised explosive devices (IEDs).

The TCM4L is a multilateral initiative formed by the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain and - lastly, and as the lead country - Italy. The group was formed in March 2024 with the primary objective of promoting comprehensive security in southern Lebanon - through a military, humanitarian and diplomatic approach - and, to achieve this, focuses on coordinating international efforts to enhance the development of the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF). These efforts are materialised in the organisation of various working groups on different issues, such as infrastructure, civil-military cooperation and operational and tactical training. Among the objectives to be achieved is the recruitment and training of 6,000 new Lebanese soldiers, subject to financial funding, infrastructure and recruitment levels. Of these, some 1,500 are intended to deploy south of the Litani River - the area of operations of the UN mission, UNIFIL - to ensure the presence of the state and support the implementation of UN Resolution 1701.

Spain's involvement in the formation of LAFs

As part of LAF training activities, several countries have deployed contingents to Lebanese bases to conduct training courses. Among them is France, which sent an invitation to Spain to join its teams of instructors. This Spanish-French contingent is based at the Sadhiye base (Sidon), where they carry out part of their training, although it is planned that these training activities can be carried out at other military installations throughout the country.

The contingent currently consists of 45 soldiers, of which forty are French and five are Spanish, under the command of a captain. The courses are scheduled to last six weeks, during which time six sections of the LAF are trained, mainly in mechanised infantry and engineers. Within the curriculum, the Spanish instructors are primarily responsible for the areas of tactical theory, military search for improvised explosive devices. These combined courses - taught by French and Spanish military personnel - are expected to last for a year and a half, until the planned training objectives have been achieved. In the case of Spain, the MTT teams come from the 16th Canary Islands Brigade.

This new collaborative activity will have a positive impact, thanks to the training of the LAF, on increasing security in southern Lebanon.