UNIFIL says Israeli military forced entry at base in southern Lebanon

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the UN to eject its troops from the area, and the UN peacekeeping mission in southern Lebanon claims that Israeli tanks have forced entry to one of its positions.

The incident comes as Israel expands its bombardment and ground attacks on Lebanon (UNIFIL) and is the latest in a line of violations and attacks by Israeli forces against the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).

Two Israeli tanks “destroyed the position’s main gate and forcibly entered the position,” according to UNIFIL in a statement on Sunday.

Soon after the tanks left, shells exploded 100 metres (328 feet) away, releasing smoke that blew across the base and sickened UN personnel, causing 15 to require treatment despite wearing gas masks, UNIFIL said. Who fired the shells and what kind of toxic substance was not disclosed.

According to the Israeli military’s account of the events, Hezbollah-affiliated Lebanese rebels fired anti-tank missiles at Israeli troops, injuring 25 of them. A tank that was assisting in the casualties’ evacuation was very close to the UNIFIL post, but the tank then burst into it.

“It is not storming a base. It is not attempting to break into a base. It was a tank under heavy fire, mass casualty event, backing up to get out of harm’s way”, the military’s international spokesperson, Nadav Shoshani, told reporters.

The military claimed in a statement that it covered the UN peacekeeping force by using a smoke screen to conceal the evacuation of the wounded soldiers.

Just before the Israeli Prime Minister called for the UN to appoint a peacekeeping force, it happened.

In a statement to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, Netanyahu said, “The time has come for you to withdraw UNIFIL from Hezbollah strongholds and from the combat zones.”

Netanyahu continued, “The Israeli army has requested this repeatedly and has received repeatedly denied this, which has the effect of providing Hezbollah terrorists with human shields.”

Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati slammed Netanyahu’s demand.

Netanyahu’s request to have the UNIFIL removed “adds a new chapter to the enemy’s strategy of not complying with international norms,” he said.

Hezbollah refutes Israel’s claim that it protects its fighters by utilizing the presence of peacekeepers close to its allies.

Ray Murphy, a former UNIFIL peacekeeper, told Al Jazeera that “the use of the tanks, firing at and around UN posts, and recklessly endangering UN personnel is a deliberate, violent act by Israeli forces”.

“In no way can this be attributed to Hezbollah. It is a decision by Israeli forces to target UN forces, UN posts”, he said.

According to Murphy, UN peacekeepers are protected by international humanitarian law.

They don’t participate in military activities. They are supporting peace. They are observing, they are reporting, they are trying to deliver humanitarian assistance. There is no justification for this attack on UN forces”, Murphy said.

Israel’s envoy to the UN, Danny Danon, said that the “UN’s insistence on keeping UNIFIL soldiers in line of fire is incomprehensible”.

UNIFIL was set up in 1978 to monitor southern Lebanon. Since then, the area has seen persistent conflict, with Israel invading in 1982, occupying southern Lebanon until 2000 and fighting a five-week war against Hezbollah in 2006.

After Israel continued to attack Gaza, Hezbollah and Israel started trading near-daily fire in October 2023. More than 2, 100 people have been killed in the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, according to Lebanese authorities, mostly over the past few weeks since Israel escalated its attacks, and more than 1.2 million people have been displaced.

Attacks on UN peacekeepers

In a number of attacks that have targeted peacekeeping positions and personnel in recent days, five peacekeepers have been hurt, with the majority of the injuries being attributed to Israeli forces by UNIFIL.

UN Security Council members Jean-Pierre Lacroix stated to the UN on Thursday that “peacekeepers’ safety and security are now in jeopardy.” He claimed that peacekeepers were kept in place despite the fact that operations had almost stopped since September 23 and that troops had been stationed. Additionally, a further 3,000 had been temporarily relocated to bigger bases.

Israeli forces have been requited by the United States and other European nations to stop attacking the peacekeepers. On Friday, US President Joe Biden said he was “absolutely, positively” telling Israel to stop.

According to a statement from the Italian government, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who is typically one of Israel’s most vocal supporters among Western European leaders, reiterated to Netanyahu that UNIFIL is being attacked by Israeli forces.

Netanyahu stated on Sunday on X that he regrets “any harm done to UNIFIL personnel” in Lebanon.

Source: Aljazeera