23rd Libre Hidalgo

The soldiers of the 10th Mechanised Infantry Brigade “Guzmán el Bueno” (based at Cerro Muriano, Córdoba) are to be relieved by members of the 12th Armoured Infantry Brigade “Guadarrama”. It will be the 23rd contingent Spain sends to Lebanon since the mission began, back in 2006.

General José Conde de Arjona will be leading the multinational brigade and the operations of UNIFIL, Sector East, in the southern strip of Lebanon.

Spain is deployed in southern Lebanon since 2006 in the framework of the mission “Libre Hidalgo”. The Spanish contingent, known as BRILIB, is stationed at the base “Miguel de Cervantes” in Marjayoun.

The mandate of 23rd BRILIB is to enforce the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701 and its annual updates, like its Spanish predecessors have been doing in southern Lebanon since 2006.

23rd BRILIB will be travelling from Madrid to Marjayoun with over 600 troops. They include a contingent from El Salvador made up of more than 50 soldiers as well as 7 Brazilians and 141 Serbs.

Almost five hundred of the servicemen and women who will be deployed are regularly stationed with the Armoured Brigade (El Goloso) and the 11th Logistic Support Group (Colmenar Viejo).

The mission is expected to last around six months. The troops will be leaving for Lebanon in three shifts in mid-May, and are expected to be relieved in November