UNIFIL said in a statement that it is “deeply concerned about the recent operations by the Israel Defense Forces in the area adjacent to the mission site
The United Nations Interim Force in South Lebanon (UNIFIL) warned on Sunday of a “very dangerous development” as Israeli military operations approached one of its sites in southern Lebanon, where ground clashes have been ongoing for a week between the militants Hezbollah and Israel.
UNIFIL said in a statement that it was “deeply concerned about the recent operations carried out by the Israel Defense Forces in the immediate vicinity of the site of Mission 6-52, southeast of Maroun al-Ras inside Lebanese territory,” considering the matter “extremely dangerous development”.
He added that “it is unacceptable to undermine the security of United Nations peacekeepers carrying out the tasks assigned to them by the Security Council.”
According to the New York Times, Israeli troops have been stationed near UN peacekeepers in Lebanon, satellite images show.
The Israeli military set up new positions next to the UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon during its incursion into the country’s southern region last week, according to two UN officials and satellite images obtained by The New York Times.
Andrea Tenendy, a spokesman for the mission, said the Israeli military was firing on Hezbollah positions from these locations, putting the peacekeepers increasingly in the crossfire.
Tennedy said the Israeli military asked UNIFIL to move its personnel as it invaded southern Lebanon, but the UN mission refused to do so.
“We were notified by the IDF of a limited incursion,” he said, referring to the Israel Defense Forces. “We’re still here, we haven’t moved.”
Satellite images taken Saturday by Planet Labs, a commercial satellite company, and obtained by The Times show about 20 Israeli military vehicles at three new positions set up this week around the UN mission. The Times did not flag the images for security reasons.
The images showed a new arm being built around the Israeli positions, one of which is about 60 meters from the UN base. A fourth Israeli position was placed a third of a mile from the UN base, according to satellite images.
Source :Skai
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