Turkey Proposes Arab-Muslim Force for Post-UNIFIL Lebanon

As the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon prepares to end its operations on December 31, 2026, a source says Turkey has presented Hezbollah officials with a proposal for a multinational security force drawn from Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Egypt, and Qatar, and that Hezbollah gave the plan preliminary approval. This paper examines that proposal against the backdrop of the Security Council's August 2025 decision to extend UNIFIL's mandate for a final time, the competing options presented by U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, and a parallel Franco-Italian push for a European-led coalition. It situates Ankara's initiative within the recently announced Mecca Joint Defense Agreement linking Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan, and considers the unresolved questions surrounding the plan, including whether any deployment would operate under a United Nations mandate, its rules of engagement, and its size. The paper also weighs the proposal against Israel's opposition to a large international force in southern Lebanon and Beirut's own preference for a further extension of UNIFIL, concluding that the resulting competition among European, Turkish-led, and Arab-Muslim options reflects a broader absence of international consensus over what security arrangement should succeed the U.N. mission.