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French contingent vehicles serving with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) cross the Qasmiyeh Bridge heading toward Sidon and Beirut, Lebanon, on April 19, 2026. (MAHMOUD ZAYYAT / AFP)

The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) confirmed Thursday that it would start leaving the country at the end of the year, despite Beirut’s calls for the UN to extend the force’s mandate.

Amid Israeli criticism of UNIFIL, the UN Security Council voted last year not to extend the South Lebanon peacekeeping force’s nearly 50-year-old mandate.

“Under Security Council resolution 2790 (2025), UNIFIL’s mandate in Lebanon will end on 31 December 2026.…