French soldier killed in Lebanon: originally from Tarn-et-Garonne, father of a family, passionate about rugby… who was Florian Montorio, died after an attack against peacekeepers

This Saturday, April 18, a French soldier was killed and three others were injured in an attack against peacekeepers, announced Emmanuel Macron. The Head of State specified that it was Florian Montorio, chief sergeant of the 17th parachute engineering regiment of Montauban, whose godmother is Princess Caroline of Monaco.

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Death of a French soldier in Lebanon: what do we know about the circumstances of the death of Staff Sergeant Florian Montorio?

Original Tarn-et-Garonnais

The disappearance of Chief Sergeant Florian Montorio plunges the department of Tarn-et-Garonne into deep mourning, on this Saturday, April 18, 2026. The soldier of the 17th Parachute Engineering Regiment died in an attack against a patrol of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).

The soldier was from Valence-d’Agen, in the west of the department. Obviously, the emotion was intense for the mayor of the town Jean-Michel Baylet. “A child from our town gave his life for peace. We pay him a vibrant tribute. May this tragedy lead us to reflect on peace in the world and the extremism which, today, is taking us to the wall”, reacted the former minister.

Staff Sergeant Florian Montorio is a member of a family well established in Deux-Rives. He had taken up residence in Saint-Clair with his partner and his two children. His parents lived in Gasques.

This Saturday, the president of the Occitanie region, Carole Delga paid tribute to him, indicating that “Occitanie was in mourning”.

“Chief Sergeant Florian Montorio of the 17th Parachute Engineer Regiment of Montauban fell this morning in southern Lebanon during an attack against UNIFIL. Three of his brothers in arms are injured and have been evacuated. The Nation bows with respect and sends its support to the families of our soldiers and to all our soldiers committed to peace in Lebanon. Everything suggests that the responsibility for this attack lies with Hezbollah. France demands authorities Lebanese authorities that they immediately arrest the culprits and take their responsibilities alongside UNIFIL”, published Emmanuel Macron on X.

Catherine Vautrin, Minister of the Armed Forces and Veterans, explained the circumstances of the attack. “This morning, while he was on a mission to open a route to a UNIFIL post isolated for several days by the fighting in the area, he was caught in an ambush by an armed group at a very short distance. Immediately hit by direct fire from a light weapon, he was relieved under fire by his comrades, who were unable to resuscitate him.”

Committed for 18 years and father of a family

“For 18 years, he had committed himself with strength and determination to serving his country, to defending peace, to fighting terrorism, to protecting his compatriots,” added Catherine Vautrin, on

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Today, the Nation bows before the memory of one of its sons who gave his life for it. My thoughts are with his partner, his children, his loved ones and his brothers in arms. France will not forget,” she wrote.

Passionate about rugby

Passionate about rugby, notably a member of RC Brulhois, Florian Montorio was at the origin, at the start of the school year in September 2025, of the creation of a touch rugby club called Les Jeunes Pousses. The club met in particular every Thursday on the municipal grounds of Auvillar, as the mayor of the town, Olivier Renaud, told La Dépêche.

Florian Montorio is the second French military victim since the start of the war in the Middle East, after that of Chief Warrant Officer Arnaud Frion, killed on March 12 in Iraq during a drone attack targeting an international coalition base near Erbil.