What is UNIFIL in Lebanon and how the UN mission came under IDF attack?

Two peacekeepers were injured in a strike by the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) on their headquarters in south Lebanon on Thursday, the UN peacekeeping mission said in a statement. The two peacekeepers, both Indonesian nationals, were injured after an IDF Merkava tank fired a shell towards an observation tower at the UNIFIL headquarters in south Lebanon's Naqura.??

CREDIT: REUTERS

Israel admits strike

Israel has also admitted that its forces opened fire in the area, saying Hezbollah militants operated near UN posts.??

This is the first time since the ongoing conflicts escalated to the current scale, the UNIFIL has come under direct assault.??

What is UNIFIL?

The UNIFIL, which stands for United Nations Interim Peacekeeping Force in Lebanon, is an international body of more than 10,000 civilian and military personnel from 50 countries.??

The UNIFIL has been deployed in southern Lebanon since 1978 along the 120 km border between Lebanon and Israel, called the Blue Line.??

UN Peacekeeping Mission in Lebanon

The UN peacekeepers, also referred to as Blue Helmets, had a largely observational role in Lebanon. But in 2006, its mandate was expanded after the end of the last war between Israel and Hezbollah, allowing them to patrol a buffer zone set up along the border.

CREDIT: REUTERS

However, for a long time, Israel has accused Hezbollah of establishing militant infrastructure along the border in violation of the UN Security Council resolution that ended the 2006 war.??

Last week, after the IDF launched its ground operations in southern Lebanon, Israel had warned UNIFIL to “remain in protected spaces.”??

World condemns Israel's 'war crime'

Thursday's IDF attack on UNIFIL has been met with international condemnation, with countries including Indonesia and Italy implying that the Israeli actions could amount to a war crime. Several other countries, including France, Spain, and Jordan, also denounced the Israeli attacks.??

CREDIT: REUTERS

UN to relocated peacekeepers

Following Thursday's incident, the head of UN peacekeeping, Jean-Pierre Lacroix, said peacekeepers were at "serious risk" and that by Sunday 300 Blue Helmets were temporarily relocated to larger bases, "with the movement of another 200 planned."

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