The Israeli military confirmed that on March 6 its tank fired on UN peacekeeping positions in southern Lebanon, injuring Ghanaian peacekeepers – an incident that highlighted the growing risk of an expansion of Israeli operations, Reuters reported, BTA reported.
Initial findings of an internal UN investigation point to Israel's responsibility for the attack, a Western military source told Reuters yesterday.
According to the Ghanaian army, three of its soldiers were wounded.
The UN peacekeeping mission UNIFIL is deployed in southern Lebanon to monitor military operations along the demarcation line with Israel – an area that is the main theater of hostilities between Israeli troops and Iranian-backed Hezbollah fighters.
The mission, which will end at the end of 2026, has been under the sights of both Israel and Hezbollah for the past few years, but as Israel considers a larger ground operation, the situation is expected to become even more dangerous in the coming weeks.
In a comment to Reuters, the Israeli army acknowledged that the fire came from its forces, but added that they were responding to anti-tank rocket fire from Hezbollah, which slightly wounded two of its soldiers.
„A comprehensive investigation, completed in recent days, found that the shelling that hit the personnel of UNIFIL, came from the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), which mistakenly identified UNIFIL forces as the source of anti-tank fire that had been launched a few minutes earlier. The IDF regrets the incident and has apologized through the appropriate channels of Ghana and the United Nations. The results of the investigation have been brought to the attention of the Israeli Armed Forces, in order to prevent the recurrence of such incidents in the future,“ the statement said.
Lebanon was drawn into the Middle East war when “Hezbollah“ fired rockets at Israel, prompting a new Israeli offensive against the group.
According to the Western source, preliminary conclusions made by the UNIFIL reserve commander with the support of explosive ordnance disposal specialists indicate that the three strikes on the Al-Qaza base were the result of direct hits by shells fired from an Israeli tank gun.
“Israeli involvement in the attack on UNIFIL is indisputable, given that these munitions are Israeli-made,“ the representative said.
The results of the UNIFIL investigation have not yet been officially announced. The mission reported on March 6 that Ghanaian peacekeepers had been injured in a massive shelling, calling the incident “unacceptable,” but did not say who was responsible.
“The investigation is not yet complete. Once it is finalized, its results will be shared with the parties, as is standard practice,“ UNIFIL spokeswoman Candice Ardiel said. “However, we reiterate that all parties to the conflict have a responsibility to ensure the safety of peacekeepers and to protect civilians. Any deliberate attack on peacekeepers is a gross violation of international humanitarian law and is in violation of resolution 1701.“
There was no immediate comment from the Lebanese Prime Minister's Office.
UN Security Council Resolution 1701, among other documents, states that no other armed forces should operate in southern Lebanon than the Blue Helmets and the Lebanese Army.
In a statement on Sunday, UNIFIL said that earlier on Sunday, another group of peacekeepers in southern Lebanon had been fired upon three times, “in all likelihood by non-State armed groups“. The organization said that none of the peacekeepers were injured at the time.
The Israeli army controls five positions on Lebanese territory and, despite a ceasefire last year, frequently carries out airstrikes in southern Lebanon, which it says are aimed at the Iranian-backed militant group “Hezbollah“.
Israel has repeatedly accused the Shiite movement of trying to rearm itself and the Lebanese armed forces of failing to disarm the group.