The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) said Israeli soldiers opened fire on its peacekeepers from a tank near an army position in southern Lebanon. UNIFIL, in coordination with the Lebanese army, has been enforcing the truce between Israel and Hezbollah agreed last November. According to UNIFIL, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) fired from a Merkava tank stationed inside Lebanese territory, with heavy machine gun rounds landing only five meters from peacekeepers. The troops were able to evacuate safely about thirty minutes later after the tank withdrew. The force described the attack as a serious breach of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which ended the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah conflict and underlies last year’s ceasefire. Sunday’s incident is the latest in a series of UNIFIL complaints regarding Israeli actions threatening peacekeepers, prompting the force to again call on the IDF to stop aggressive behavior near its personnel.
