Four UN observers in Lebanon injured by grenade on border with Israel
Four UN observers were injured by a shell in southern Lebanon on Saturday. This is reported by UNTSO, the UN body tasked with monitoring the ceasefire in the Middle East. Shelling takes place every day on the border between Israel and Lebanon between Israel and the Islamist movement Hezbollah.
“This morning, four UNTSO military observers patrolling on foot along the Blue Line, which marks the border with Israel, were injured when a grenade exploded nearby,” the organization said in a statement. The four have been hospitalized and an investigation has been opened into the origin of the explosive.
The UN body calls it “unacceptable” to target peacekeepers and calls on all sides to “stop the heavy firefights”. UNTSO is separate from the United Nations Peacekeeping Mission in Lebanon (UNIFIL). As part of that mission, approximately 10,000 blue helmets are stationed in the south of Lebanon, on the border with Israel. According to the Lebanese national news agency ANI, “enemy aircraft” had bombed the region and the patrol was allegedly targeted.
In a statement, the Israeli army said that “contrary to press reports, the army did not target any UNIFIL vehicle in the Rmeich region.”
Hezbollah regularly fires rockets at Israel from Lebanon. The Shiite group and the Israeli army have been fighting each other for some time. The political arm is part of the regular political system in fragmented Lebanon. The military branch of Hezbollah is included on the European terror list.
