Lebanon: UN says Israeli tanks burst through gates of base

The United Nations says Israeli tanks have burst through the gates of a base of its peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon, the latest accusation of Israeli violations and attacks that have been denounced by Israel’s own allies.

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called on the United Nations to evacuate the troops of the UNIFIL peacekeeping force from combat areas in Lebanon on Sunday.

Hours later, the force reported what it described as additional Israeli violations, including two Israeli Merkava tanks destroying the main gate of a base and forcibly entering before dawn that morning.

Soon after the tanks left, shells exploded 100 metres away, releasing smoke that blew across the base and sickened UN personnel, causing 15 to require treatment despite wearing gas masks, it said. It did not say who fired the shells or what sort of toxic substance it suspected.

It also accused Israel’s IDF military of halting a logistics convoy. The Israeli military did not immediately respond to the statement.

“Any deliberate attack on peacekeepers is a grave violation of international humanitarian law and Resolution 1701,” the UN force said.

“UNIFIL’s mandate provides for its freedom of movement in its area of operations, and any restriction on this is a violation of Resolution 1701. We have requested an explanation from the IDF for these shocking violations.”

In his earlier statement addressed to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, Netanyahu said: “The time has come for you to withdraw UNIFIL from Hezbollah strongholds and from the combat zones.”

“The IDF has requested this repeatedly and has met with repeated refusal, which has the effect of providing Hezbollah terrorists with human shields.”

Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah, which Israel has been battling on the ground since launching an incursion at the start of this month, denies Israel’s accusation that it uses the proximity of peacekeepers for protection.

The conflict between Israel and Hezbollah militants resumed a year ago when the Iranian-backed group began launching rockets at northern Israel in support of Hamas at the start of the Gaza war.

Five peacekeepers have been wounded in a series of strikes in recent days, most blamed by UNIFIL on Israeli forces.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, typically one of Israel’s most vocal supporters among Western European leaders, spoke to Netanyahu by phone on Sunday and denounced the “unacceptable” Israeli attacks, her government said.

Italy has more than a thousand troops in the 10,000-strong UNIFIL force, making it one of the biggest contributors of personnel. France and Spain, which each have nearly 700 soldiers in the force, have also condemned the Israeli attacks.

Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz reiterated on Sunday that Israel has banned UN chief Guterres from entering, due to what it says is antisemitic and anti-Israeli conduct, including his failure to adequately condemn Iran for a missile attack.

The presence of UNIFIL puts peacekeepers from 50 separate countries in harm’s way, in a force initially set up in southern Lebanon in 1978.

The area has seen decades of persistent conflict, with Israel invading in 1982, occupying southern Lebanon until 2000 and again fighting a major five-week war against Hezbollah in 2006, which ended with a ceasefire monitored by UNIFIL.

Israel’s assault against Hezbollah over the past three weeks has been the deadliest in Lebanon in decades, driving 1.2 million Lebanese from their homes and inflicting an unprecedented blow on the group by killing most of its senior leadership.

Israeli officials say UNIFIL has failed in its mission of upholding UN Resolution 1701, passed after the 2006 war, which calls for the border area of southern Lebanon to be free of weapons or troops other than those of the Lebanese state.

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, has expressed “deep concern” about reports of the strikes, urging Israel to ensure their safety and that of the Lebanese military, which is not party to Israel’s conflict with Hezbollah.

The Israeli military has already told UN peacekeepers to get out of the way, asking them weeks ago to prepare to relocate more than 5km from the border “in order to maintain your safety,” according to an excerpt from a message seen by Reuters.