- Israeli strike wounds UN peacekeepers in Lebanon
- Lebanon, UN, and global powers condemn attacks
- UNIFIL peacekeepers targeted two days in a row
A new Israeli attack has wounded United Nations peacekeepers in southern Lebanon, the second such incident in as many days.
Lebanon’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported on Friday that the Israeli army struck a Sri Lankan battalion’s watchtower in Naqoura, which is part of the UN Interim Force in Lebanon.
According to Lebanon’s official National News Agency, soldiers of the battalion were wounded by artillery fire from an Israeli Merkava tank.
At a news conference in Beirut, Lebanese interim Prime Minister Najib Mikati described the attack as a “denounced crime.” He also stated that he had addressed efforts to negotiate a ceasefire in Lebanon with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
On Friday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres stated it was “very clear that this incident is intolerable and cannot be repeated.”
Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated on Friday that it was “outraged” by the attack on UNIFIL peacekeepers and asked that Israel desist from any “hostile actions” toward them.
Human Rights Watch demanded a UN investigation into the assaults, describing the purposeful targeting of UN missions as a “war crime.”
“UN peacekeepers in south Lebanon have long played a critical civilian protection and humanitarian role,” said Lama Fakih, Middle East and North Africa director for the New York-based rights organization. “Any targeting of UN peacekeepers by Israeli forces violates the laws of war and dangerously interferes with UNIFIL’s civilian protection and aid work.”
China and India also expressed “grave concern and strong condemnation” of Israel’s strikes on UN peacekeeping activities, as well as the “deteriorating security situation along the Blue Line.
India’s Ministry of External Affairs states, “Inviolability of UN premises must be respected by all and appropriate measures taken to ensure the safety of UN peacekeepers and the sanctity of their mandate.”
Assault on Blue Helmet
The strike came one day after UN peacekeepers reported that the Israeli military “repeatedly” fired on UNIFIL headquarters and positions in southern Lebanon.
The mission said that two Indonesian peacekeepers were hurt and stayed in the hospital.
UNIFIL personnel wear blue helmets to be easily identified, and their location is regularly notified to the Israeli military.
Israel stated that its soldiers had opened fire in the region, claiming that Hezbollah fighters against whom it is at war operate near UN installations.
The incident on Thursday sparked widespread criticism.
Italian Defence Minister Guido Crosetto condemned the incident as a possible war crime, breaking with his country’s backing for Israel throughout the year-long conflict in Gaza and Lebanon.
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“This was not a mistake or an accident,” Crosetto told a press conference. It could constitute a war crime and represented a very serious violation of international humanitarian law.
UNIFIL spokesman Andrea Tenenti said that the attack was a “very serious” development.
He stated that Israel had earlier requested that the peacekeepers leave “certain positions” along the border, but “we decided to stay because the UN flag must fly in [the] south of Lebanon.”
“At the moment, we are staying, we are trying to do whatever we can to monitor [and] to provide assistance,” Tenenti went on.
Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi stated that the peacekeepers had been hospitalized for further evaluation.
“Indonesia strongly condemns the attack,” she told reporters. “Attacking UN personnel and property is a major violation of international humanitarian law.”
