Paris: French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez issued a joint statement, condemning the recent targeting of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).
According to a press release from the Elysee, the statement said: “We express our outrage after several peacekeepers were injured in Naqoura. These attacks constitute a serious violation of the obligations of Israel under UNSCR 1701 and humanitarian international law. Those attacks are unjustifiable and shall immediately come to an end.”
The UNIFIL said on Thursday that an Israeli tank fired on a watchtower in its headquarters in Naqoura, southern Lebanon, injuring two members, Xinhua news agency reported.
It said that the IDF soldiers also fired at a UN position in Labbouneh, hitting the entrance to the bunker where peacekeepers were sheltering, and damaging vehicles and a communications system.
The UNIFIL said on Friday that two more peacekeepers were injured in two explosions near a watchtower in the Lebanese border area of Labbouneh.
According to a UNIFIL post on X, several walls at the UN position near the Blue Line in Labbouneh collapsed when an Israeli caterpillar struck the perimeter, and Israeli tanks moved close to the UN position.
“We recall that all peacekeepers must be protected and reiterate our praise for the continued and indispensable commitment of UNIFIL troops/ personnel in this very challenging context,” added the joint statement.
The leaders further called for an immediate ceasefire as well as for the full implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701 (UNSCR1701) by all parties, which is the only way to allow for Israeli and Lebanese people to return to their homes in security.
The UN Security Council Resolution 1701 was adopted in 2006, which calls for an end to hostilities between Israel and Lebanon.
Since September 23, the Israeli army has been launching an unprecedented, intensive air attack on Lebanon in an escalation with Hezbollah.
Since early October, the Israeli army has been carrying out specific ground operations against Hezbollah targets near the Lebanese border, and intensifying its airstrikes and artillery shelling, especially on the southern suburbs of Beirut, the stronghold of Hezbollah.
–IANS