Marjayoun (Lebanon) – On October 12, 2022, the military personnel of the 16th Brazilian Contingent were decorated with the United Nations Medal, in a ceremony held at the Miguel de Cervantes Military Base, together with other members of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).
The award was given in recognition of the services rendered in favor of world peace, and for having fulfilled the eligibility requirements as members of a United Nations (UN) peacekeeping mission.
The Medal Parade was presided over by UNIFIL’s Head of Mission and Force Commander, Major-General Aroldo Lázaro Saenz (Spain), accompanied by UNIFIL’s Eastern Sector Commander, Brigadier-General Ignacio Olazábal Elorz (Spain).
The ceremony was attended by numerous civilian and military authorities, including the Attaché of Defense, Naval, Army and Air Force of Brazil in Lebanon, Captain Mauricio Morgado Pedrosa, and Colonel Emerson Afonso Azevedo Costa, future Attaché of Brazil in Lebanon, who was a member of the 3rd Brazilian Contingent in UNIFIL, in 2015.
The medal received by the Brazilian Peacekeepers is an international decoration awarded by the UN to military, police and civilian personnel from all over the world, who participate in peacekeeping operations and humanitarian efforts for an uninterrupted period of more than ninety days.
The medal, awarded to UNIFIL military personnel, has two blue stripes representing the United Nations. In the center, two red lines and a green stripe on a white background, representing the colors of the Lebanese flag, with white symbolizing the purity of peace; red, the courage and resistance of its people; and green, strength and growth, also marked by the country’s cedar trees.
The following Brazilian military were honored: Major De Castro, Major Miguel, Major Avena, Captain Sousa, Lieutenant Natanael, Lieutenant Ribeiro, and Lieutenant Tacílio. In the opportunity, tributes were also paid to UNIFIL soldiers who gave their lives in defense of peace in the region and in compliance with the United Nations mandate.
Since 2014, the Brazilian Army has been sending military personnel as part of the Spanish Brigade, responsible for the eastern sector of the area of operations south of Lebanon, on the border with Israel.
UNIFIL has approximately 10,000 peacekeepers from 48 countries. The current Brazilian contingent has been deployed since May and will remain in the mission until November, when they will be replaced by the 17th Contingent, which is already being prepared in Spain.
Source: Aditância de Defesa e do Exército na Espanha *** Translated by the DEFCONPress FYI team ***