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Dozens of Nations Back Indonesia’s Call to Protect UN Peacekeepers in Lebanon

The appeal increases pressure on the Security Council to toughen safeguards for UNIFIL.

Overview

  • A joint statement at the UN, delivered Thursday by Indonesia’s envoy, condemned attacks on UNIFIL, urged stronger protection, and asked for a meeting of troop-contributing countries.
  • The text said attacks on peacekeepers could be war crimes under international law and called for those responsible to face justice.
  • Three Indonesian soldiers were killed in separate incidents in southern Lebanon in late March, and peacekeepers from France, Ghana, Nepal and Poland were among the wounded.
  • Preliminary UN findings said one death was caused by an Israeli tank projectile and two by a likely Hezbollah-placed explosive device.
  • The endorsers also voiced deep concern over Lebanon’s humanitarian crisis, citing heavy civilian losses, damage to infrastructure, and displacement of more than one million people.