India has expressed its concern over Israeli firing on UN peacekeepers in Lebanon as 600 Indian soldiers who are part of the peacekeeping mission face risk.
The Ministry of External Affairs issued a statement on Friday expressing concern over the “deteriorating security situation along the Blue Line. We continue to monitor the situation closely.”
“Inviolability of UN premises must be respected by all, and appropriate measures taken to ensure the safety of UN peacekeepers and the sanctity of their mandate,” the ministry stated.
The statement came as the Israeli military acknowledged a “hit” on Friday on a United Nations peacekeeping position in Lebanon. Two Sri Lankan peacekeepers were injured in the second such incident in two days, the UNIFIL mission said Friday. Two Indonesian soldiers of the UNIFIL were injured a day before after they fell from an observation tower as an Israeli tank fired towards it.
Notable, as many as 600 Indian soldiers are part of the UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon, according to an India Today report. India has said it was closely monitoring its soldiers stationed along the 120-kilometre Blue Line on the Israel-Lebanon border, which it cannot withdraw unilaterally.
The Israeli military said it had responded with fire to “an immediate threat” around 50 metres from the UNIFIL post. It pledged to carry out a “thorough review” after Israel faced a chorus of condemnation from UN chief Antonio Guterres and Western allies.
Guterres condemned the firing as “intolerable” calling it “a violation of international humanitarian law.” The British government said it was “appalled” by reports of the wounded.
United States President Joe Biden has said he “absolutely positively” urged Israel to stop firing at UN peacekeepers during its conflict with Hezbollah in Lebanon.
French President Emmanuel Macron said the peacekeepers were “deliberately targeted” and renewed a call for an end to exports of weapons used by Israel in Gaza and Lebanon. A joint statement was also issued by French, Spanish, and Italian leaders expressing “outrage”.