An Israel Defense Forces (IDF) tank has fired at a UN peacekeeping outpost in southern Lebanon, damaging a watchtower and destroying surveillance equipment, the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) said in a statement on Wednesday.
The peacekeeping force described the incident as what appeared to be another “deliberate” attack by the IDF, urging the Israeli military to “respect the inviolability of UN premises at all times.”
“This morning, peacekeepers at a position near Kafer Kela observed an IDF Merkava tank firing at their watchtower. Two cameras were destroyed, and the tower was damaged,” the force said in a statement.
Yet again we see direct and apparently deliberate fire on a UNIFIL position.
The UN peacekeepers have repeatedly accused Israel of attacking its positions in southern Lebanon amid the ongoing escalation between West Jerusalem and the Hezbollah militant group. The attacks have resulted in damage to several UNIFIL installations, with several peacekeepers wounded.
The force was originally formed in 1978 to observe the withdrawal of Israeli forces below the so-called Blue Line separating Lebanon from Israel and the Israeli-occupied Syrian Golan Heights. UNIFIL is currently composed of some 10,000 troops from around 50 countries. The contingent is tasked with ensuring that neither Israel nor Hezbollah maintains a military presence between the Blue Line and the Litani River.
Israel has directly accused the peacekeepers of acting as a “human shield” for Hezbollah terrorists. On Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres to withdraw the UNIFIL troops from southern Lebanon altogether. Should the force not evacuate, the lives of the UN troops would be “endangered,” he warned. Thus far, however, the peacekeepers have refused to vacate their positions in the region.