60 years of Peacekeeping: A Special Focus on UNTSO

By T. Vishnu Jayaraman


29 May, 2008 marks not only the International Day of Peacekeepers, but also the sixtieth anniversary of UN peacekeeping operations, with celebrations held at the New York Headquarters, as well as in peacekeeping missions and UN offices around the world.

Since its inception in 1948, the United Nations has led a total of 63 peacekeeping operations around the world. Currently, there are approximately 110,000 peacekeepers from more than 100 countries serving in 20 peacekeeping operations worldwide.

Mixed Armistice Commission, Jerusalem

Israeli and Jordanian commanders hold a joint conference under the auspices of the Mixed Armistice Commission in the shell-scarred Mandelbaum Gate, no-man's land between Arab and Jewish Jerusalem. 2 May 1950. (UN Photo)

In his message for the occasion, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon stated, “This anniversary is an occasion to celebrate, but also to mourn our fallen colleagues. Over these six decades, more than two thousand, four hundred men and women have died serving the cause of peace. Just last year alone, we lost 87 brave individuals. Each one is a hero. Today, we recommit ourselves to ensuring that their sacrifices are never forgotten, and the vital work of the blue helmets continues as long as they are needed.”

The United Nations undertook its first peacekeeping mission in 1948, as the first group of UN military observers was deployed to the Middle East to monitor the Armistice Agreement between Israel and its Arab neighbours.

The United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO) was established by the UN Security Council to assist the UN mediator and the Truce Commission in supervising the observance of the truce in Israel. However, in 1949 the Security Council entrusted them with the supervision of General Armistice Agreements, which ended the 1948 Arab-Israeli war, and established the Armistice lines between Israel and the West Bank, as well as other responsibilities such as the observance of the ceasefire in the Suez Canal and the Golan Heights following the Arab-Israeli war in 1967.

In setting up UNTSO, Ralph Bunche formulated the basic principles of what later became peacekeeping. The three basic principles, such as consent of the parties, impartiality, and non-use of force except in self-defense and in defense of the mandate, continue to set apart UN Peacekeeping Operations as a foundation for maintaining international peace and security. As Mediator, Mr. Bunche negotiated armistice agreements between Israel and its four neighbors, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria, an accomplishment that was widely regarded as impossible and for which he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

To mark the 60th anniversary, the United Nations Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) has made a short film, “In the Cause of Peace,” detailing both achievements and the challenges of UN peacekeeping. In the film, Under Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, Jean-Marie Guéhenno states, “UN peacekeeping is still making a difference in the lives of millions of people around the world. The most important asset is our people. For the price of precious time away from family and friends and sometimes at considerable personal risk, these people dedicate themselves to the principles of this organization. Both women and men from very different countries come together in the sense of common purpose and common good.” The 14-minute film takes us through peacekeeping events from 1948-2008 incorporating short interviews with Jane Holl Lute, Assistant Secretary-General, DPKO, Lakhdar Brahimi, former Special Adviser to the Secretary-General, and Sir Brian Urquhart, former senior UN official. The film also covers television statements issued by former UN Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld, and UN Mediator Ralph Bunche.

Judy Hilton, Political Affairs Officer for the Asia and Middle East Division of the United Nations Department of Peacekeeping Operations, told the UN Chronicle, “UNTSO represents the United Nations and the international community’s commitment to a comprehensive peace settlement in the region. Presently, the primary role of UNTSO is to deploy skilled observers to the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) and the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), and to maintain the liaison architecture with the original signatories to the 1949 Armistice Agreements.” When a resolution to the Middle East conflict is achieved, she said, the Security Council “will determine the future of UNTSO.”

Currently, UNTSO has 153 military observers, 70 of whom are currently deployed in the Israel-Syria sector under the operational control of UNDOF in support of UNDOF mandate implementation; 51 observers are currently with UNIFIL under the same conditions; 4 are deployed to Egypt, and the remaining 28 serve in UNTSO headquarters in Jerusalem. To commemorate its establishment and the anniversary of UN peacekeeping operations, UNTSO will hold an internal ceremony and issue a special edition of the UNTSO Magazine for the International Day of UN Peacekeepers.

UNTSO has played, and continues to play, a very important and positive role. To date, it has lost 49 military and civilian staff.

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