Netanyahu orders UN to ‘immediately’ move Lebanon peacekeepers
Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered the United Nations to “immediately” move peacekeepers stationed in Lebanon “out of harm’s way”.
The Israeli prime minister said the UN had “repeatedly refused” to withdraw Unifil, its interim force in Lebanon, which he claimed had allowed Hezbollah to use peacekeepers as “human shields”.
“Your refusal to evacuate Unifil soldiers has turned them into hostages of Hezbollah. This endangers both them and the lives of our soldiers,” he said.
Switching from Hebrew to English, Mr Netanyahu then appealed directly to Antonio Guterres, the UN Secretary General, who was recently banned from entering Israel. “Mr Secretary General, get the Unifil forces out of harm’s way,” he said. “It should be done right now, immediately.”
Najib Mikati, Lebanon’s prime minister, criticised Mr Netanyahu’s comments, describing them as “a new chapter in the enemy’s approach of not complying with international norms”.
It came after Unifil, which has been in southern Lebanon since the last Israel-Hezbollah war in 2006, said a fifth peacekeeper had been hit by gunfire at its headquarters in Naqoura. Unifil also said Israel had forcibly entered its base in southern Lebanon and blocked its peacekeepers’ movements in a nearby village.
Mr Netanyahu accused European leaders of “putting pressure in the wrong place” after facing criticism from nations that have citizens in Unifil.
After two peacekeepers were injured on Friday, France summoned Israel’s ambassador and issued a statement with Italy and Spain calling such attacks “unjustifiable”.
Giorgia Meloni, the Italian prime minister, told her Israeli counterpart on Sunday that attacks on UN peacekeepers in Lebanon were unacceptable, according to her office. Simon Harris, Ireland’s Taoiseach, described Israel’s attack on UN peacekeepers in Lebanon as a breach of international law.
But Mr Netanyahu said European leaders “should focus their criticism on Hezbollah, who uses Unifil as a human shield just as Hamas in Gaza uses UNRWA [the United National Relief and Works Agency for Palestine]”.
International leaders have also intensified calls for a ceasefire across the Middle East after Israel launched a limited ground invasion of southern Lebanon at the start of this month.
According to the Lebanese health ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians, at least 2,036 people have been killed and 9,535 people wounded in Lebanon since the start of Israel’s war in Gaza last October. More than one million have been displaced, according to the authorities.
On Sunday, the Israeli military said its troops in Lebanon had captured a Hezbollah fighter stationed in one of the terror group’s tunnels, the first such announcement since the ground invasion began.
The Israeli military also called for residents of more than 20 villages in south Lebanon to evacuate their homes on Sunday as troops continued to target Hezbollah positions across the border. Hezbollah has also continued to target Israel, launching 115 projectiles across the border by 3pm local time on Sunday.