Today's focus for close protection teams is Lebanon. The UN peacekeeping force in the south, UNIFIL, is in its final mandate under Security Council resolution 2790, which ends the mission on 31 December 2026 and calls for a full withdrawal within the following year. The Foreign Office still advises against all travel to the South and Nabatiyeh Governorates, where Israeli airstrikes and a military presence continue. As the force draws down, the monitoring buffer along the Blue Line thins, so treat south Lebanon as a do-not-travel environment and track the drawdown closely.
On regulation, the Security Industry Authority has set out how Martyn's Law, the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act, will work in practice, with an online scope tool due in the new year, template procedures for standard and enhanced tier premises, and a notifications portal on GOV.UK. Premises holding 200 to 799 people fall into the standard tier and those holding 800 or more into the enhanced tier, with the Act expected to start in spring 2027. Providers advising venues should begin mapping their sites now.
The UK national threat level from terrorism remains severe, meaning an attack is highly likely. Northern Ireland related terrorism in Northern Ireland stands at substantial. The standing advice holds: work to the current Foreign Office position for each country rather than an older brief, and keep a fallback route wherever a border, port or airport could close at short notice.
