New Rotation Arrives in Lebanon

Lt.-Col. Zoltán Horváth, the new military leader of the UNIFIL Joint Geographic Information Service (JGIS) – the senior national representative of the Hungarian soldiers – took over the leadership responsibilities from Capt. Sándor Kisgyörgy, while 1st Lt. Mihály Sándor relieved 1st Lt. Roland Rábel.

The two military GIS specialists completed their tours of duty and travelled back to Hungary on 2 November. At a ceremony held before their return home, memorial shields were presented to both of them by the leader of the JGIS unit.

UNIFIL Commander Maj.-Gen. Michael Beary awarded a certificate of merit to Capt. Sándor Kisgyörgy in recognition of his outstanding work performed to high standards over the last two years. This is the first time that a Hungarian military GIS specialist has received such a high-level recognition.

The two members of the incoming rotation are not newcomers in Lebanon, as both of them are “returning guests" there. Lt.-Col. Horváth served with UNIFIL for a year as the leader of the second rotation in 2008, and 1st Lt. Sándor is to start his third tour of duty in the Middle East country.

For ten years now, Hungarian military GIS specialists have been serving at the UNIFIL HQ in Naqoura, where they provide geoinformation support for UNIFIL teams carrying out peacekeeping operations in Southern Lebanon.

The other two members of the 11th rotation of the UNIFIL Hungarian contingent are expected to arrive in the area of operations in the first days of February 2017.