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UN peacekeepers in Lebanon say Israeli forces fired on one of their stations in a “deliberate” attack that damaged a watchtower.
The alleged shooting on Wednesday came amid a standoff between the UN mission and Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu who accused him of “providing human shields” to the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group.
The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, known as Unifil, said in a dispatch on X that peacekeepers saw Israeli tanks firing at a watchtower near Kfar Kela in southern Lebanon. Two cameras were destroyed, and the tower was damaged, he said.
“But again we saw direct and apparently deliberate fire at the Unifil position,” the mission said in a statement.
Israel previously asked the UN to move members of the Unifil peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon at least three miles north during the ground invasion after five peacekeepers were injured during an Israeli attack on Hezbollah.
Unifil says its forces have attacked Israel several times, although Israel has denied any such incidents.
The mission, which was set up in 1978 to oversee Israel’s withdrawal from southern Lebanon, said it would remain on the southern border despite Israeli aggression.
“We remind the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) and all actors of their obligation to ensure the safety and security of UN personnel and property and to respect the inviolability of UN premises at all times,” the mission said.
UNIFIL consists of 10,541 peacekeepers from 50 countries. The UK sent one peacekeeper to Unifil compared to around 1,000 from Italy, more than 600 from France and around 300 from Ireland.
Peacekeepers are currently operating in an area of ​​410 square miles between the Blue Line and the Litani River in southern Lebanon. The Blue Line is a UN-mapped line that separates Lebanon from Israel and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. Israeli forces withdrew to the Blue Line when they left southern Lebanon in 2000. Any illegal crossing of the Blue Line by land or air from the other side is a violation of Security Council resolution 1701, according to Reuters.
Over the weekend, the mission said Israeli troops with two tanks “forced entry” into Unifil positions near the village of Ramyah, crossing the Blue Line. The mission accused the forces of firing smoke near the peacekeeping force which affected at least 15 personnel.
US defense secretary Lloyd Austin on Wednesday spoke with his Israeli counterpart Yoav Gallant and “reinforced the importance of taking all necessary measures to ensure the safety and security of UNIFIL forces and the Lebanese Armed Forces”, according to the Ministry of Defense.
In addition, 16 EU countries called for modified rules of engagement in Lebanon, adding that they should be more effective in light of the recent attacks.
“The message we want to send to Israel is that if you stop your army, the UN can also change its approach on the part of Lebanon, so that we can peacefully achieve what you are doing now by attacking Hezbollah bases militarily. “Italian defense minister Guido Crosetto said.
After accusing Unifil of failing in its mission to keep armed fighters out of the border area, Israel adopted a more conciliatory tone on Wednesday.
“The State of Israel is very important in Unifil’s activities and has no intention of harming the organization or its personnel,” said foreign minister Israel Katz.
Meanwhile, Israeli warplanes struck the southern outskirts of Beirut, in the first attack on the city since October 10, when two attacks near the city center killed 22 people and destroyed all the buildings in the densely populated neighborhood.
Israeli operations in Lebanon have killed at least 2,350 people over the past year and displaced more than 1.2 million people, according to the country’s health ministry.
