Israeli Army Targeted Peacekeeping Patrol in ‘Serious Violation’ of 1701, Says UN
NEWS
UNIFIL said Israeli occupation forces opened machine-gun fire on its peacekeepers inside Lebanese territory, calling the incident a serious violation of Security Council Resolution 1701.
The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) said on Wednesday that its peacekeepers came under Israeli gunfire near the Sarda area in southern Lebanon, describing the event as a “serious violation” of UN Security Council Resolution 1701.
In a statement, UNIFIL reported that a patrol of peacekeepers in marked vehicles along the Blue Line was targeted by Israeli soldiers operating a Merkava tank on Tuesday.
According to the mission, Israeli occupation forces fired a ten-round burst of machine-gun fire above the convoy, followed by four additional bursts in close proximity.
Peacekeepers immediately activated UNIFIL’s deconfliction channels to demand that Israeli forces halt their fire. The mission stressed that both the Israeli tank and the UN convoy were located inside Lebanese territory at the time of the incident. No injuries were reported.
UNIFIL said the Israeli army had been informed in advance of the patrol’s exact timing and route, as required for movement in sensitive areas along the Blue Line.
“Attacks on or near peacekeepers are serious violations of Security Council resolution 1701,” the mission said, calling on the Israeli army “to cease aggressive behaviour and attacks on or near peacekeepers working to rebuild stability along the Blue Line.”
According to the Anadolu news agency, the Israeli army has not commented on the incident.
UN patrols in southern Lebanon have repeatedly faced Israeli actions, including laser targeting and warning shots, which UN Secretary-General António Guterres’s spokesperson, Stéphane Dujarric, has described as “extremely dangerous.”
A ceasefire has been in effect in Lebanon since November 2024 after more than a year of Israeli attacks that killed over 4,000 people and wounded 17,000, amid the genocidal war on Gaza.
Since the ceasefire, Lebanon’s Health Ministry has recorded 335 deaths and 973 injuries in 1,038 Israeli attacks.
Under the terms of the ceasefire, the Israeli army was required to withdraw from southern Lebanon by January 2025, but it has only partially pulled back and continues to maintain forces at five border outposts.
(PC, AA)
It's long past the time that the U.N. should have shot back. It's long past the time that the colonial project should have been dismantled.
Should we be surprised ?