Binyamin Netanyahu, the Israeli Prime Minister, on Sunday called upon the United Nations to remove its Unifil soldiers from the battlegrounds in Lebanon. He stressed that the repeated appeal to the UN by their military was due to their soldiers being held captive by Hizbullah in the region.
In the escalating clash in the south of Lebanon, five peacekeepers have thus far been harmed, as reported by Unifil. The latest incident involved a peacekeeper being shot near Unifil’s base in Naqoura on Friday. Post bullet-removal surgery at Naqoura Hospital, his condition has stabilised, a Unifil bulletin confirmed.
However, Unifil couldn’t determine the source of the gunfire. The Defence Forces verified all Irish peacekeepers were safe and present by Saturday afternoon.
On the same day, another two peacekeepers were injured in south Lebanon near their watchtower amid an Israeli attack. Two more peacekeepers got wounded on Thursday due to a fall from a watchtower following an Israeli tank assault.
Alongside 33 others, Ireland co-signed a proclamation instigated by Poland condemning recent occurrences in Lebanon and appealing for the United Nations personnel’s safety to be respected. According to the proclamation, Unifil’s role is especially vital regarding the escalating condition in the region, and it vigorously criticises the latest assaults on Unifil peacekeepers. It demands an end to such acts and thorough investigation.
The proclamation also called for parties involved in the conflict to recognise Unifil’s existence, thereby ensuring the safety and security of its staff, so they can carry out their peacekeeping and stability work in Lebanon and the broader region.
Furthermore, by Friday night, buildings in Unifil’s Ramyah location had experienced major destruction due to blasts from nearby artillery fire.
On Saturday, Tánaiste Micheál Martin expressed the urgent need for a comprehensive calm down all across the region initiated by all the participants.
“Mr Martin has issued a strong call for de-escalation in the violence in Gaza, the West Bank, and Lebanon, calling for the cessation of indiscriminate bombings and killings. He stressed the utmost importance of respecting and safeguarding UN peacekeepers, a message he urged the international community to communicate unequivocally.
In recent news, the Israeli military instructed inhabitants of 23 villages in southern Lebanon to decamp for areas north of Awali river, a water body flowing from the western Bekaa valley into the Mediterranean sea, as stated by their military announcement. These villages, predominantly located in the southern parts of Lebanon, have been the recent focus of Israel’s attacks, with most of them already deserted.
Citing an influx of Hizbullah activities, the Israeli military justified the evacuations, arguing it was a necessary measure to ensure civilian safety. They have alleged that Hizbullah is employing these locations to hide weapons and further assaults against Israel, allegations which Hizbullah refuted, denying the use of civilians as a front for hiding their weapons.
The feud between Israel and Hizbullah took a sharp turn a year ago following the launch of rockets into northern Israel by the Iran-supported group in a show of support for Hamas at the commencement of the Gaza war, resulting in escalated tensions over the past four weeks.
The increasing Israeli assaults in Southern Lebanon, the Bekaa Valley and suburbs of southern Beirut have led to the displacement of approximately 1.2 million people since the 23rd of September, as per the Lebanese government.
According to a statement from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs issued on a recent Saturday, the number of displaced Lebanese has surpassed that of the last major conflict between Israel and Hizbullah in 2006, which led to the evacuation of nearly a million residents.”