Security forces seeking arrest of two suspects over attack on UNIFIL

W460

The evidence suggests the involvement of two shooters in the deadly attack on UNIFIL near al-Aqbiyeh and security forces are now seeking the arrest of the two suspects, a Lebanese judicial source said.

The UNIFIL convoy came under fire late Wednesday, which left one Irish peacekeeper dead and three others wounded, the Irish military said.

UNIFIL acts as a buffer between Lebanon and Israel. The force operates in the south near the border, a stronghold of Iran-backed Hezbollah.

Force spokesman Andrea Tenenti called it "a very serious incident" and told reporters it was "important" for the Lebanese authorities to bring the perpetrators to justice.

It is the first death of a UNIFIL member in a violent incident in Lebanon since January 2015, when a Spanish peacekeeper was killed by Israeli fire.

UNIFIL was set up in 1978 to monitor the withdrawal of Israeli forces after they invaded Lebanon under the excuse of a Palestinian attack.

Israel withdrew from south Lebanon in 2000 but fought a devastating 2006 war with Hezbollah.

UNIFIL was beefed up to oversee the ceasefire that ended the 2006 conflict, and now counts nearly 10,000 troops.

- Bullet to the head -

Witnesses said villagers in the al-Aqbiyeh area blocked the Irish peacekeepers vehicle after it took a road along the Mediterranean coast not normally used by the United Nations force.

Al-Aqbiyeh is just outside UNIFIL's area of operations, the force said.

A Lebanese judicial source told AFP that the driver was killed by a bullet to the head, one of seven that penetrated the vehicle.

The three passengers were wounded when the vehicle hit a pylon and overturned.

The Irish army is to send military police to Lebanon on Saturday to help with the investigation.

Over the years, there have been a number of incidents between Hezbollah supporters and U.N. peacekeepers but they have rarely escalated.

Wafiq Safa, Hezbollah's security chief, told Lebanon's LBCI television on Thursday that the incident was "unintentional" and called for investigators to be given time to establish the facts.

Relations between UNIFIL and communities in south Lebanon have always been "very positive," the force's spokesman Tenenti said Friday.

"The support of the communities is paramount in order for us to implement our mandate," he added.

Comments 8
Thumb farsical.resistance 17 December 2022, 13:59

Sadly nothing will come out of this. It's the same MO of when these inbreed chimps in humanoid form assassinated Capt. Samer Hanna and feigned ignorance. The patsy that Hezbollah introduced as the culprit, could not even fire a gun let alone score a bullseye on a moving target. He barely served a shoplifting sentence.

Thumb i.report 17 December 2022, 15:59

And the killers of lockman salim, and the abductors (and killers) of Joseph Sader, MEA employee… were not even going to mention hariri’s killers since Hassan Nasrallah gave the order.

Thumb chrisrushlau 17 December 2022, 17:34

The UN patrol ran over some local people, saving Lebanon's Christian community the trouble while it prepared for Christmas.

Thumb abe.linconstein 17 December 2022, 19:50

Breaking new Lebanon's Christians attack Israel with missiles, rockets and drones.
Chrisrushlau replies:"Article 24 of the Lebanese Constitution, what Article 24 of the Lebanese Constitution, I never heard of it."

Thumb galaxy 17 December 2022, 17:52

Security forces seeking arrest of two suspects over attack on UNIFIL

I am afraid they will soon be classified as saints.

Missing HellAndWaite 17 December 2022, 18:46

Maybe Hidin' Hassan will explain how 12 bullet impacts head high on the car's glass can possibly be "unintentional" ...

and if that is their claim, Hassan knows the gunmen's intentions how, exactly? ... Seems they have spoken on the matter and Hassan intends to "protect" them from Justice .. A G A I N ...

"Resistance" is a lie and Nasrallah is a habitual liar

Missing cedars 18 December 2022, 02:23

Amazing How immediately we find the abductors when it's in the Christian or Sunni territories, In the Christian area it's usually an Israelis Mossad and in the Sunni territories it's connected with Nusra.

Missing un520 18 December 2022, 04:00

Poor trigger-happy Hezbollah-puppets. They are not allowed by Hassan Nasrallah to fire a single bullet against Israel, so they have to settle for easier targets like UN.