Hezbollah fired rockets that injured 4 UN peacekeepers, not Israel: Italy
Two rockets exploded at a United Nations peacekeeping base in southern Lebanon on Friday, injuring four Italian peacekeepers, days after Italy's Defense Ministry clarified that Israel was not responsible for a similar attack that wounded four others.
In a statement Friday, the U.N. Interim Force in Lebanon, or UNIFIL, stated that two 122-mm rockets struck the Sector West Headquarters in Shama. Although four were hospitalized, none of the injuries were life-threatening.
Italy Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani told Italian media that evidence suggests Hezbollah, an Iran-backed Lebanese Shia militia and U.S.-designated terrorist organization, is responsible for the latest attack.
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On Tuesday, Italy's defense ministry admitted that Hezbollah was responsible for an attack on Tuesday that injured four Ghanaian peacekeepers, reports AFP. Three of the wounded required hospitalization.
The acknowledgment reverses earlier claims that had attributed the attack to the Israeli military. A defense ministry official clarified that Defense Minister Guido Crosetto only had "partial information" when he earlier blamed the attack on Israel.
UNIFIL said the attack was likely carried out by "non-state actors," aligning with the findings of the Israeli Defense Forces, which identified Hezbollah as responsible for two separate incidents that day, hitting posts in the Ramyeh and Chamaa areas of southern Lebanon.
Italy's initial statement prompted a response from Israel's newly appointed Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar, who assured his Italian counterpart, Antonio Tajani, that an immediate investigation would be conducted.
Following the investigation amid military escalations in the region that have continued since the Hamas attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, the IDF confirmed that Hezbollah was indeed behind the attack, The Jerusalem Post reported.
The French Foreign Ministry condemned the rocket attacks, which hit multiple UNIFIL positions, including a patrol of French peacekeepers. Although the French patrol suffered no casualties, the attacks have heightened concern for the safety of UNIFIL personnel.
UNIFIL reported that its peacekeepers and facilities were targeted in three separate incidents on Tuesday.
One attack took place at 9:50 a.m. local time, when a rocket hit a UNIFIL post in the Ramyeh area, while another occurred at 1:30 p.m., targeting a post in Chamaa.
The incidents have prompted repeated calls to ensure the protection of U.N. personnel, assets and premises to guarantee the continuation of their operations in southern Lebanon.
France expressed support for the U.N. peacekeeping forces, praising their courage and ongoing commitment amid the escalating tensions. The French government stressed that UNIFIL must operate freely to fulfill its mandate and called for a ceasefire to be implemented immediately, per U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701.
A key part of Resolution 1701 was to expand UNIFIL's mandate. UNIFIL was originally formed in 1978 to monitor the withdrawal of Israeli troops from southern Lebanon during the civil war. In 2006, UNIFIL was given the tasks of monitoring the ceasefire, overseeing Israel's withdrawal from southern Lebanon, and ensuring that only the Lebanese Army operated in the area.
