UNIFIL says Israeli forces fired on peacekeepers in Lebanon
The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon said Wednesday that Israeli forces fired on its peacekeepers a day earlier in the country's south, demanding the Israeli army "cease aggressive behavior".
It is the latest such attack reported by the peacekeepers in southern Lebanon, where UNIFIL acts as a buffer between Israel and Lebanon and has been working with Lebanon's army to support the 2024 truce between Israel and the Arab country.
"Yesterday, peacekeepers in vehicles patrolling the Blue Line were fired upon by IDF soldiers in a Merkava tank," a UNIFIL statement said, referring to the de facto border.
"One ten-round burst of machine-gun fire was fired above the convoy, and four further ten-round bursts were fired nearby," AFP quoted the statement as saying.
It said that both the peacekeepers and the Israeli tank were in Lebanese territory at the time of the incident and that the Israeli military had been informed of the location and timing of the peacekeeping patrol in advance.
"Peacekeepers asked the IDF to stop firing through UNIFIL's liaison channels... Fortunately, no one was injured," it said.
UNIFIL said in November that Israeli soldiers shot at its troops in the south. Israel's military said it mistook blue helmets for "suspects" and fired warning shots.
In October, UNIFIL said one of its members was wounded by an Israeli grenade dropped near a UN position in the same region, the third incident of its kind in just over a month.
"Attacks on or near peacekeepers are serious violations of UN Security Council Resolution 1701," UNIFIL said on Wednesday, referring to the 2006 resolution that formed the basis of the November 2024 truce.
"We call on the IDF to cease aggressive behavior and attacks on or near peacekeepers working to rebuild stability along the Blue Line," the peacekeepers said.
Israel carries out regular attacks on Lebanon in violation of the truce. Last month, UNFIL said that more than 10,000 Israeli air and ground violations were recorded since the ceasefire took effect.
Israel has also kept troops in five southern Lebanon areas, breaching the ceasefire deal that demanded the full Israeli withdrawal.
Revealed: US tech giant Palantir linked to Israel’s 2024 'pager attacks' in Lebanon
UNIFIL chief says has 'no evidence' of Hezbollah rearming in south Lebanon
Israeli airstrikes disrupt fragile ceasefire in southern Lebanon
Fuel-smuggling ship seized in Persian Gulf waters
UN warns Gaza children at risk from unexploded Israeli bombs
Israel not willing to implement ceasefire deal: Hamas official
Houthi: Israel has killed thousands of Muslim women in Palestine
UNIFIL says Israeli forces fired on peacekeepers in Lebanon
US set to demand five-years of social media data from all foreign visitors
VIDEO | IRGC carries out large-scale cloud seeding operation
VIDEO | Press TV's news headlines
PressTV NEWSLETTER
now
This makes it easy to access the Press TV website
