Guterres: Attacks on peacekeepers could amount to 'war crimes'

The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) military base was forcibly entered by Israeli tanks, and several peacekeepers were injured, the United Nations Secretary-General Guterres condemned the attack, saying that the move "may amount to war crimes".

According to Reuters and Agence France-Presse, Israel has attacked Hezbollah in southern Lebanon in recent days, wounding at least five peacekeepers. In a statement late Sunday, U.N. Secretary-General spokesman Stephane Dujarric said Guterres paid tribute to "UNIFIL peacekeepers who remain at all their posts and that the U.N. flag continues to fly."

Guterres reiterated that peacekeepers must not be targeted. "Attacks on peacekeepers violate international law, including international humanitarian law," Dujarric said. This could amount to a war crime."

The Israeli military offered a different explanation, saying Iranian-backed Hezbollah militants fired an anti-tank missile at Israeli troops, wounding 25. The attack came very close to the UNIFIL post, and an Israeli tank assisted the evacuation of wounded soldiers under fire before reversing into the UNIFIL post.

Nadav Shoshani, the Israeli military's international spokesman, said: "This is not a raid on a base. This is not an attempt to enter the base. This is a tank backing away from danger under heavy fire."

The Israeli military said in a statement that its troops used a smoke screen to provide cover for the wounded soldiers as they evacuated and that their actions posed no danger to the UN peacekeepers.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Guterres: "It is time for you to withdraw UNIFIL from Hezbollah strongholds and combat zones." This repeated request by the IDF, which you have repeatedly rejected, is tantamount to providing a human shield to Hezbollah terrorists."

According to the UNIFIL statement, at 4:30 am on the 13th (Singapore time at 9:30 am on the 13th), two Israeli tanks destroyed the main gate of the peacekeeping force compound in Ramia and entered, staying for 45 minutes before leaving.

The statement also said that at about 6:40 a.m., peacekeepers at the same location pointed to multiple gunshots 100 meters to the north, and smoke came out. Despite the protective masks worn by peacekeepers, 15 of them developed skin irritation and gastrointestinal distress after smoke entered their premises.