(VEE) LEBANESE TROOPS COMPLETE ITALIAN LANGUAGE COURSE

(VELINO) Roma, 26 Jul - The Italian military contingent deployed in Lebanon as part of the mission of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) has concluded an Italian language course held for a number of officers and non-commissioned officers from Lebanon's General Directorate of General Security. A ceremony for the presentation of the certificates of attendance and knowledge of the Italian language was held at the Shama base in Southern Lebanon, where Italian troops carry out operations for UNIFIL in the country's western region. The participants in the six-month course took an exam to obtain the first level of certification according to the standards established by the Council of Europe in the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). The end-of-course ceremony was attended by: UNIFIL's Sector West Commander, General Arturo Nitti; Colonel Fawzi Chamoun, an officer of the General Directorate of General Security; and Cristina Foti, director of the Dante Alighieri Association in Tripoli who has long cooperated with Italian UNIFIL troops under an agreement with the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. "We're proud of this achievement, as it allows us to better operate alongside Lebanese military forces to stabilise and maintain peace in the area through patrol, control, and surveillance operations, in full compliance with the mission laid down in the UN Security Council Resolution 1701," General Nitti affirmed. Colonel Chamoun added: "Not only that. Learning Italian reinforces the friendship between nations bonded by common roots and a long history of dialogue and mutual respect." vel
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