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The United Nations Peace Maintenance Force in Lebanon says that its outgoing deputy commander was injured after one of his convoys was “violently attacked.”
The UN Interim Force in Lebanon (Unifil) said in a statement that the convoy was taking the Peace forces to Beirut airport when he was attacked and that one of his vehicles fires.
The mission has demanded a “complete and immediate investigation of the Lebanese authorities.
Both Lebanon’s prime minister Nawaf Salam, and the Lebanese army condemned the attack against Unifil, and said they would work to arrest those involved.
Several videos online show a white UN vehicle on, such as a group of young men, which transports yellow flags, pursues and overcome what seems to be the peace maintenance staff while trying to flee.
The separate images show a group of men shouting while kicking, hitting and climbing a convoy of three UN vehicles along a dark road.
The deputy commander wounded by Unifil, who was not appointed, returned home after finishing his mission, according to the statement.
“We are surprised by this scandalous attacks against peace maintenance personnel who have been serving to restore safety and stability to the south of Lebanon for a difficult time,” he added.
“The attacks against the peace forces are flagrant violations of international law and can be equivalent to war crimes. We demand a complete and immediate investigation by the Lebanese authorities and that all perpetrators are taken before justice.”
The supporters of the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah have gathered outside the Beirut airport since Thursday by a confrontation between Lebanon and Iran that saw two Iranian planes prohibited when landing in the Lebanese capital.
The problem has left dozens of Lebanese citizens stranded in Iran.
The Amal movement, an allied group to Hezbollah, said that “the attack on Unifil is an attack to the south of Lebanon”, and described it as “a stab in civil peace.”
Lebanese Interior Minister Ahmed Al-Hajjar told the state media that a security meeting would convene Saturday in the light of the attack, describing him from a “crime against peace maintenance forces.”
Unifil was created to monitor a damping zone created near the border with Israel after the end of the 2006 Lebanon War, and has positions throughout the south of Lebanon.
