The Lebanese Navy ( ar, القوات البحرية اللبنانية ''Al-qūwātu al-Baḥriyya al-Lubnāniyya'', literally "the Lebanese Sea Forces") is the

Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...

of the

Lebanese Armed Forces ) , founded = 1 August 1945 , current_form = 1991 , disbanded = , branches = Lebanese Ground ForcesLebanese Air Force Lebanese Navy , headquarters = Yarze, Lebanon , flying_hours = , websit ...

. It was formed in 1950 and based in

Beirut Naval Base Beirut Naval Base ( ar, قاعدة بيروت البحرية, translit=Kaidat Beirut al Bahriyah) is the first naval base A naval base, navy base, or military port is a military base, where warships and naval ships are docked when they have no m ...

, Lebanon's first naval base. The navy, which currently lacks the proper number of equipment, has a number of approximately 69 vessels of various sizes and roles; however, the navy is trying to modernize itself, and increase its size. The flag of the Lebanese navy depicts a

Phoenicia Phoenicia () was an ancient thalassocratic civilization originating in the Levant region of the eastern Mediterranean, primarily located in modern Lebanon. The territory of the Phoenician city-states extended and shrank throughout their histor ...

n ship with the

Lebanese Cedar ''Cedrus libani'', the cedar of Lebanon or Lebanese cedar (), is a species of tree in the genus cedrus, a part of the pine family, native to the mountains of the Eastern Mediterranean basin. It is a large evergreen conifer that has great reli ...

tree, positioned on an anchor above the Arabic inscription of the navy's name. The Lebanese government approved on January 16, 2009, a request by the

Lebanese Ministry of Defense The Ministry of National Defense ( ar, وزارة الدفاع الوطني ''Wizārat al-Difāʾ al-Waṭanī'') is Lebanon's service section for the Lebanese Armed Forces. The Ministry is located in Yarzeh, Baabda District, Mount Lebanon. The ...

to build a new naval base on the shores of Nahr el-Bared Palestinian refugee camp in northern Lebanon.

Equipment

Current fleet list

On February 19, 2015, the Saudi press agency quoted on a Saudi official that Saudi Arabia had halted the $3 billion program for military supplies to Lebanon. The Lebanese Navy does not have any operational vessels maneouvrable in difficult weather conditions and undergoes difficulties in accomplishing Search and Rescue missions, Marine Safety, Marine Environmental Protection, Maritime Law Enforcement and the controlling of illegal migrant traffic to Europe. Also, Lebanon intends to provide protection for the future natural gas installations and enforce the Law and State authority in Lebanese territorial waters. Lebanon counts on the US military aid to be equipped with multi-function vessels with a wide range of capabilities such as the RiverHawk OSV 60. In May 2021, The United States announced that it donate 7 ships to the Lebanese Navy

Coastal Radar Stations

The Lebanese Navy is in charge of the coastal radar stations, in 1992, three stations in all of

Tripoli Tripoli or Tripolis may refer to: Cities and other geographic units Greece *Tripoli, Greece, the capital of Arcadia, Greece * Tripolis (region of Arcadia), a district in ancient Arcadia, Greece * Tripolis (Larisaia), an ancient Greek city in ...

Sidon Sidon ( ; he, צִידוֹן, ''Ṣīḏōn'') known locally as Sayda or Saida ( ar, صيدا ''Ṣaydā''), is the third-largest city in Lebanon. It is located in the South Governorate, of which it is the capital, on the Mediterranean coast. ...

, and Tyre were established, followed by upgrades and new stations in 1997. However, during the

2006 Lebanon War The 2006 Lebanon War, also called the 2006 Israel–Hezbollah War and known in Lebanon as the July War ( ar, حرب تموز, ''Ḥarb Tammūz'') and in Israel as the Second Lebanon War ( he, מלחמת לבנון השנייה, ''Milhemet Leva ...

all of the stations were bombed by the

Israeli Navy The Israeli Navy ( he, חיל הים הישראלי, ''Ḥeil HaYam HaYisraeli'' (English: The Israeli Sea Corps); ar, البحرية الإسرائيلية) is the naval warfare service arm of the Israel Defense Forces, operating primarily in ...

. After the war ended,

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

and Lebanon signed a bilateral agreement to establish The Coastal Radar Organization (CRO) which aimed to create and consolidate a chain of seven coastal radar stations with the ability to cover the entire Mediterranean coast of Lebanon. Three of these stations are older and were refurbished with new equipment and facilities; the four other are new installations.

Surveillance

In February, 2008, the Lebanese navy ordered six Pharos XLR3+ Long Range Multisensor Surveillance Platforms in order to equip their naval stations which lack 24/7 long-range surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities in all weather conditions.

Training

The Lebanese Naval Forces send nearly all of their Navy officers for training abroad in a variety of European countries as well as the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. Each country offers different training depending on the specializations of each officer. Officers sent to the United States have undergone schooling in surface warfare and experienced on job training with the US Coast Guard. Many Lebanese Naval Forces Engineers head to

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

where they receive education regarding detection, transmission, and artillery. Skills used in much of the domestic duties of the Lebanese Naval Forces from initial staff courses, amphibious training, and maritime drug enforcement are taught at British academies. The skills of the Lebanese Naval Forces are not incredibly diverse or necessarily advanced to the level of European countries due to their limited human resources and equipments.

Cooperation with the UNIFIL MTF

The existence of the UNIFIL Maritime Task Force is helping the Lebanese Navy to enhance the skills of its personnel through the periodical joint exercises and daily cooperation. Upon the arrival of the MTF to the region (after the

), the Lebanese Navy began jointly working with the navy in lead, which at the time was the

Italian Navy "Fatherland and Honour" , patron = , colors = , colors_label = , march = ( is the return of soldiers to their barrack, or sailors to their ship after a ...

, in order to insure a successful outcome to the assigned peace operation.

References

External links

French Minister of Defense">Minister of Defence (France), French Minister of Defense
delegate Secretary of Old Combatants and Memories Kader Arif visits President of Lebanon Michel Suleiman and Commander-in-Chief of Lebanese Armed Forces Jean Kahwaji and Chief of General Staff in a hommage ceremonie to pay tribute to the victims of Drakkar on 23 October 2013; while Lebanon was celebrating its 70th Independence Anniversary; assuring the President of Lebanon "

remains and hopes to remain a lead partner for Lebanon in the mobilization of the international community to ensure political stability"]{{Dead link, date=April 2019 , bot=InternetArchiveBot , fix-attempted=yes Military of Lebanon Navies by country, Lebanon Military units and formations established in 1950