Toulon, France: A French engineering detachment yesterday geared up a dock landing ship in Toulon to carry 150 troops and some 100 vehicles to join the expanded UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon.
The 150 sappers were scheduled to leave on the Foudre early today, joining 49 French soldiers who landed yesterday at the southern Lebanese coastal town of Naqoura to reinforce France's current 200-member contingent.
They were the first reinforcements to arrive to boost the current 2,000-strong force known as Unifil, which is commanded by France.
The United Nations said on Friday more European soldiers were needed for a vanguard force of 3,500 troops that the UN wants on the ground by August 28 to enforce a ceasefire between Israel and the Lebanese-based Hezbollah.
The strengthened force is expected to work with 15,000 or so Lebanese troops to restore peace to southern Lebanon, after more than a month of violence.
In Toulon, home to a large military harbour, members of the engineering corps were loading the vessel with vehicles, including 10 armoured personnel carriers, eight bulldozers and a large-capacity crane.
Col Christophe Issac, head of the 13th engineering corps, said the detachment would repair roads destroyed in the fighting, in addition to demining and cleaning up pollution in the region between the Litani River and the UN-drawn border to the south.
"The aim is to respond to the priority needs of Unifil for supporting mobility, to allow both the deployment of the Lebanese troops and the passage of humanitarian convoys," he said.
The dock landing ship, an amphibious assault ship that transports and launches amphibious craft and vehicles with their crews and embarked personnel, was expected to arrive in Beirut or Naqoura on Thursday, he said.
