By Ma Bo and Qu Fatong

UNIFIL Head of Mission and Force Commander, Major General Diodato Abagnara gives a speech at the event commemorating the 99th anniversary of the founding of the Chinese PLA and the 20th anniversary of China's peacekeeping engagement in Lebanon on July 28, 2026.

BEIRUT, Aug. 6 -- This year marks the 20th anniversary of Chinese "Blue Helmets" participating in the peacekeeping operations in Lebanon. Since the deployment of the first Chinese peacekeeping contingent to Lebanon in 2006, more than 8,800 Chinese peacekeepers have served in succession. Over the past 20 years, Chinese peacekeepers have cleared more than two million square meters of minefields, neutralized over 18,000 landmines and items of unexploded ordnance (UXO), and repaired 320 kilometers of roads, earning praise from the United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS) as the "best demining team."

Chinese peacekeepers also provided humanitarian assistance, delivering medical treatment to more than 90,000 people, performing over 2,500 surgeries, and donating more than 100,000 items of supplies to safeguard lives and health in the mission area. They are affectionately dubbed "the Most Beloved Oriental Friends" by the Lebanese people.

At a recent themed event organized by the 24th Chinese Peacekeeping Contingent to Lebanon to commemorate the 99th anniversary of the founding of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) and the 20th anniversary of China's peacekeeping engagement in Lebanon, UNIFIL Force Commander Diodato Abagnara spoke highly of the contributions made by Chinese peacekeeping forces. He noted that over the past two decades, Chinese peacekeepers have built roads, cleared mines and unexploded ordnance, assisted communities, and served local people, earning the trust and respect of the people in southern Lebanon through concrete actions. They have become an indispensable pillar of UNIFIL.

Li Gang, commander of the 24th Chinese Peacekeeping Contingent to Lebanon, stated that amid continuous conflicts and sustained tensions in the mission area since the beginning of this year, the Chinese peacekeepers have risen to challenges, remained at their posts, and worked shoulder to shoulder with peacekeepers from other countries to jointly safeguard peace and stability.