Unifil calls on Israel to stop attacks on peacekeepers and Lebanese soldiers

The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon has called on the Israeli military to halt attacks on its peacekeepers, civilians and Lebanese soldiers after grenades were dropped near their positions.

Unifil peacekeepers have been working with the Lebanese army to support a November ceasefire that sought to end more than a year of hostilities between Israel and the militant group Hezbollah that culminated in two months of open war.

Unifil said the Israeli army had “dropped grenades near peacekeepers working alongside Lebanese soldiers to provide security for civilian workers” on Thursday in Maroun Al Ras, near the Israeli border. Nobody was hurt.

The workers “were trying to clear the ruins of homes destroyed due to the war” and peacekeepers had informed the Israeli army in advance of the activity, Unifil said in a statement on Friday.

A month ago, Unifil said Israeli drones had dropped four grenades near peacekeepers. Israel insisted that “no intentional fire” was directed at the force on that occasion.

In Thursday's incident, Unifil said, two groups of peacekeepers “heard a grenade explode near an excavator” around 500 metres away.

“Moments later, the first group saw a drone fly overhead and witnessed an explosion about 30 to 40 metres away,” it added.

Soon after, “the second group saw another drone drop a grenade that exploded just 20 metres over their heads”.

Under the US-brokered ceasefire, Hezbollah and Israel were both required to withdraw from south Lebanon, while Unifil was deployed there alongside the Lebanese military, in part to help dismantle Hezbollah infrastructure.

Israel has kept up regular strikes on what it says are Hezbollah targets despite the truce, and has maintained its troops in five locations it deems strategic.

Unifil said Thursday's attack demonstrated disregard for peacekeepers “and the stability they are working to restore”.

“Such actions also constitute a serious violation of [UN] Security Council resolution 1701,” it added, referring to a resolution that ended a 2006 conflict between Israel and Hezbollah and formed the basis of the November ceasefire.

The statement urged the Israeli army “to cease attacks on or near peacekeepers, civilians and Lebanese soldiers and allow us to carry out our mandated tasks without obstruction”.

Unifil has been deployed since 1978 to separate Israel and Lebanon, and numbers some 10,000 personnel from almost 50 countries.

In August, the UN Security Council voted to end Unifil's mission in 2027.

This week, a western diplomatic source told The National that the ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel exists “in name only”, as Israel continues to hit Lebanon almost daily.

“It's more of a de-escalation, as Israel strikes wherever and whenever it wants,” the source added.

Israel has breached the ceasefire thousands of times, according to data from Unifil. Breaches include air incursions, air strikes and ground operations.

The UN said on Wednesday that the Israeli strikes on Lebanon have killed more than 100 civilians in 10 months.

The continuing attacks have threatened the legitimacy of Lebanon’s new government, the western diplomat added. The government has been widely welcomed by the international community as reformist and is the first to have initiated formal steps to disarm Iran-backed Hezbollah.