Lebanese premier condemns attack on UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon

By Naim Berjawi

BEIRUT (AA) - Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati on Saturday condemned the attack on the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) that injured three soldiers and a civilian.

In a phone call to the Commander-in-Chief of UNIFIL forces, Mikati expressed his “solidarity with the international forces after the targeting of a UNIFIL vehicle, which led to a number of injuries,” according to the Premier’s Office.

General Lazaro informed the Lebanese prime minister that UNIFIL was investigating the incident.

Earlier on Saturday, at least one civilian and three soldiers from the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) were injured in an Israeli raid that targeted their vehicle in the south of the country, according to official media.

Meanwhile, the UNIFIL expressed its concern “over the surge of violence across the Blue Line right now.”

Commenting on the incident, the Israeli army denied targeting any UNIFIL vehicle in the Rmeish area in southern Lebanon.

Tension has flared along the border between Lebanon and Israel amid intermittent exchanges of fire between Israeli forces and Hezbollah, in the deadliest clashes since the two sides fought a full-scale war in 2006.

The border tension comes amid an Israeli military offensive in the Gaza Strip that has killed more than 32,700 people following a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas on Oct. 7 last year.

*Writing by Ikram Kouachi​​​​​​​