UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. Security Council expressed “strong concern” Monday as Israel has fired on and wounded U.N. peacekeepers in southern Lebanon during intensified fighting, reiterating its support for their role in supporting security in the region.
It’s the first statement by the U.N.’s most powerful body since Israel’s attacks on the positions of the peacekeeping force known as UNIFIL began last week, drawing international condemnation.
U.N. peacekeeping chief Jean-Pierre Lacroix told reporters that Secretary-General António Guterres confirmed Monday that peacekeepers will remain in all their positions even as Israel has urged the peacekeepers to move 5 kilometers (3 miles) north during its ground invasion in Lebanon.
Israel has been escalating its campaign against Hezbollah in Lebanon across a U.N.-drawn boundary between the two countries. The sides have been clashing since the Iranian-backed militant group started firing rockets a year ago in solidarity with its ally Hamas in Gaza. Hamas’ deadly attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, launched the war.
The Security Council statement, issued after emergency closed consultations on Lebanon, did not name either Israel, Lebanon or Hezbollah. Read by Swiss U.N. Ambassador Pascale Baeriswyl, the council’s current president, it urges all parties “to respect the safety and security of UNIFIL personnel and U.N. premises.”