UN peacekeepers injured as Israeli troops fire at base in south of Lebanon

Attack comes after Israeli military drone seen at UN site, peace mission says

UN peacekeepers monitor the Lebanon-Israel border from a watch tower. Reuters

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Two Indonesian peacekeepers were injured when the Israeli military fired at an observation tower in their compound in southern Lebanon on Thursday, UN officials said.

The peacekeepers did not suffer serious injuries, "but they remain in hospital," Unifil said in a statement.

Jean Pierre Lacroix, head of UN Peacekeeping, warned the Security Council on Thursday that the safety and security of peacekeepers is now increasingly in “jeopardy”, adding the mission had decided to relocate 300 peacekeepers to larger bases temporarily for their safety.

Early on Thursday, an Israeli tank fired towards the tower in Naqoura, at the headquarters of the UN Interim Force In Lebanon, hitting it directly and causing the peacekeepers to fall, a Unifil representative said.

Israel said its military "opened fire in the area" of the Unifil base after telling UN forces to seek shelter, insisting that Hezbollah fighters were operating near by.

In pictures - a tour with Unifil in Lebanon before Israel's invasion

A soldier of the Spanish contingent of Unifil stands in front of the ensign of his regiment on a Unifil base close to Ghajar on the Blue Line separating Israel from Lebanon in southern Lebanon. All photos: Oliver Marsden for The National

The Unifil base

Unifil soldiers relax in the canteen

Soldiers exit their UN-marked vehicles

An Israeli missile strikes the town of Khaim, close to the Unifil base

Soldiers service their weapons

A soldier stands in front of UN-marked vehicles

Captain Hector Alonso, 31

Colonel Juan Garcia Antonio Martinez, 50

A soldier exercises in the gym

A soldier patrols the town of Aadysit Marjaayoun in southern Lebanon

Mr Lacroix said Unifil operational activities have virtually come to a halt since September 23 and peacekeepers have been confined to their bases with significant periods of time in shelter.

“This severe impediment to the mission’s freedom of movement within the area of operations has limited the mission’s monitoring and reporting ability,” he said.

The UN peacekeeping chief urged the warring parties to return immediately to a cessation of hostilities and to take real action towards full implementation of Security Council resolution 1701.

“We stand ready to support all efforts towards a diplomatic solution. Unifil is mandated to support the implementation of resolution 1701, but we must insist that it is for the parties themselves to implement the provisions of this resolution,” he added.

Resolution 1701, which brought a ceasefire to the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war, included provisions for a 30km buffer zone between Israel and southern Lebanon, with no armed forces other than the Lebanese army and UN peacekeepers.

Last week, Unifil reported that the Israeli military asked peacekeepers to “relocate” from certain positions before Israel's ground operations in Lebanon. The peacekeeping mission rejected the request.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said at the time that peacekeepers would remain wherever the “UN flag continues to fly”.

The force's 50 contributing countries had agreed on Thursday to keep more than 10,400 peacekeepers between the Litani River in the north and the UN-recognised boundary between Lebanon and Israel known as the Blue Line in the south.

France, which requested the Security Council meeting on Lebanon, condemned all attacks on Unifil security.

“An explanation about the fire will be required,” said Nicolas de Riviere, France's ambassador to the UN. He called on the warring parties to abide by their obligations and allow Unifil to continue implementing its mandate, “including by fully respecting its freedom of movement".

Unifil has repeatedly urged Hezbollah and Israel to refrain from action that puts its 10,400 peacekeepers at risk amid the escalating conflict, warning that any deliberate attack on its personnel would constitute a serious violation of international humanitarian law and of Security Council resolution 1701.

US envoy Robert Wood accused Hezbollah of undermining the security of Israel and Lebanon, citing long-standing financial and material backing from Iran.

“Hezbollah built up its forces in plain sight, in blatant disregard of resolutions 1559 and 1701,” said Mr Wood, adding that the group poses an indirect threat to Lebanon's sovereignty and political independence.

The US ambassador to the UN, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, said on X that Washington was "deeply concerned" by the incidents and said it was "critical" Israel doesn't threaten the safety of peacekeepers.

France is planning to host an international conference on October 24 aimed at rallying humanitarian aid for Lebanon and to identify ways of supporting its institutions, particularly the state's armed forces.

“What we need to do is to make sure that the Lebanese armed forces are properly equipped and trained to do the job,” Mr de Riviere told reporters. “There is a question of political will from the Lebanese authorities as well, but we need to provide enough support to help the Lebanese army to be deployed to the south.”

He also said the 21-day ceasefire proposed by the US and France on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly is “still on the table and the parties must seize it”.

Mr Wood echoed the french ambassador's remarks, stating that the "solution to this crisis is not a weaker Lebanon, it's a strong and truly sovereign Lebanon protected by a legitimate security force embodied in the Lebanese Armed Forces."

Israel's UN ambassador Danny Danon called for the "disbanding and disarmament of all Lebanese and non-Lebanese militias."

"We are fulfilling our obligations to ensure this, and the council must support us in our efforts," he said.