The UN says Israeli forces fighting Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon opened fire on UNIFIL soldiers, wounding two.

The United Nations peacekeeping mission in southern Lebanon, known as UNIFIL, said on Thursday that Israeli forces opened fire on several locations they had installed in the area, as the situation between the world organization and Israel escalated. to increase Israel’s military activities against The group supported by Iran is Hezbollah.

“The UNIFIL headquarters in Naqoura and nearby positions were hit several times. This morning, two peacekeepers were wounded behind the IDF. [Israel Defense Forces] The Merkava tank fired its weapon at the observation tower of the UNIFIL headquarters in Naqoura, knocking it down,” said the UNIFIL unit in a statement posted on social media. They are still hospitalized.”

UNIFIL peacekeeping missions have been deployed in southern Lebanon for over 45 years. The IDF did not immediately respond to CBS News’ request for comment on incidents involving UNIFIL soldiers.

“We remind the IDF and all stakeholders of their obligations to ensure the safety and security of UN personnel and assets and to respect the inviolability of UN buildings at all times,” UNIFIL said on Thursday.

Several hundred UNIFIL troops are deployed in southern Lebanon and Ireland, but the country’s military said Thursday that no one was injured by IDF fire, and that no positions were targeted. Ireland’s leader, Simon Harris, issued a statement, however, saying he was “deeply concerned by reports that the Israeli Defense Forces fired on UNIFIL positions at their headquarters in Naqoura.”

“Shooting soldiers will not be tolerated or accepted,” said Harris. “The Blue Helmet worn by UN peacekeepers must be sacred. They serve the international community in some of the most challenging areas in the world. They do not see combat, and their role must be respected at all times.”

UNFIL said that among recent incidents in recent days, “IDF soldiers deliberately shot and disabled” perimeter surveillance cameras used by the peacekeeping unit, and “also deliberately fired at UNP 1-32A,” the military base in Naqoura, it said. “three Party meetings were held before the conflict began,” a damaging light and a relay station.”

Italy also protested to Israel about its troops firing on UN troops, Reuters news agency said, citing Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto as saying any fire on UNIFIL bases was “absolutely unacceptable” and a clear violation of international law.

Tensions between Israel and UNIFIL have increased as the IDF has stepped up attacks against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. The UN force has been tasked since 1978 with ensuring security on the Lebanese side of the so-called Blue Line, the de-facto border established by UN resolutions to end the previous war between Israel and Hezbollah, when the IDF withdrew from Lebanon. . Israeli officials recently accused UNIFIL of failing to do its job, allowing Hezbollah to entrench itself along the border for decades.

IDF operations – both devastating airstrikes and ground operations, have increased greatly two weeks ago, and thousands of Israeli soldiers were deployed on the northern border. 10 IDF soldiers died in this operation. Airstrikes also hit areas south of Beirut, which, along with the south, have long been considered Hezbollah strongholds, and the Bekaa Valley east of the capital.

The standoff between UNIFIL and Israel has been playing out for weeks, since the IDF sent in ground troops. UNIFIL troops remained in their positions in southern Lebanon during the intense operation, despite warnings to withdraw.

The UN special coordinator in Lebanon, and the head of UNIFIL, on Tuesday called for an urgent solution to the problems on the Israel-Lebanon border. Statement by Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert and UNIFIL commander Lt. Gen. Aroldo Lázaro comes exactly one year after Hezbollah began launching rockets and drones into northern Israel to support its Hamas allies in the Gaza Strip.

At the end of September, and its war against Hamas in Gaza Still, Israel stepped up its war with Hezbollah – a powerful, well-armed Iranian group deeply involved in Lebanese politics – in response to the group launching more than 10,000 rockets into Israel in support of Hamas last year.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the purpose of the operation across the Blue Line is to drive Hezbollah and weapons far enough from Israel’s northern border to stop a hail of rocket fire, so that tens of thousands of Israelis can return to their desert. homes in the region. The IDF said the ground operation across the border, launched at the end of September in southern Lebanon, “will consist of limited, localized, and targeted attacks based on accurate information.”

Lebanese officials say Israeli forces have killed at least 2,141 people in the country since October 8, 2024 – nearly half of them since the attack surged less than two weeks ago, and at least 22 in strikes on Wednesday alone. More than 10,000 others were injured, according to the country’s health ministry.

“Too many lives have been lost, displaced, and destroyed, while civilians on both sides of the Blue Line have been left searching for safety and stability,” the two UN officials said in their statement on Tuesday. “Today, one year later, the almost daily firefights have grown into an unrelenting military campaign whose humanitarian impact is not catastrophic … you want and deserve it.”

What is UNIFIL?

UNIFIL is the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon. The peacekeeping mission was established in 1978 as part of the withdrawal of Israeli forces from southern Lebanon. Its mission is to help the Lebanese government return to regional authority, and restore international peace and security.

UNIFIL peacekeepers are also tasked with ensuring that the area in which they operate is free from acts of violence of any kind and to protect aid workers and civilians under the threat of imminent violence.

On October 1, Israel notified UNIFIL of its intention to begin a limited incursion into southern Lebanon. The Irish military said earlier that its troops deployed with UNIFIL “remain steadfast in their determination and commitment to the mission.”

UNIFIL has approximately 10,500 peacekeepers from 50 countries. IDF troops have been operating near UN Post 6-52 recently, where 30 Irish UNIFIL peacekeepers are stationed. The Irish leader said on Thursday that all Irish forces in Lebanon “continue to do their job with distinction, despite the most difficult conditions.”

Since Israel began its offensive in southern Lebanon, there have been clashes between IDF forces and Hezbollah in the towns of Maroun El-Ras, Yaroun and Naqoura, and UNIFIL has called the situation dangerous and unacceptable.

What is the Green Line?

UNIFIL peacekeepers operate in an area marked by a 75-mile-long demarcation line, in southern Lebanon. It is not an official international border, but it was intended to last five decades to keep the Lebanese and Israeli armed forces apart.

On either side, Israel or Hezbollah, crossing or firing across the Blue Line without permission from the Lebanese government is a violation of UN Resolution 1701, although such explosions have been a daily occurrence since Oct. 8, 2023. The boundary is sometimes crossed. by Lebanese farmers and citizens, because it is not always well marked.