The United Nations said on Sunday Israeli tanks had 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. 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 which blew across the base and sickened U.N. 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.
I don’t know if anyone here is interested in uncomfortable facts, but I’ll try my luck: UNIFIL has been neglecting their job for the past 18 years, and especially in the past year. Hezbollah has been firing rockets on Israel daily, directly from UNIFIL territory, and UNIFIL has done nothing to hinder them. The IDF revealed yesterday, with video proof, the existence of a tunnel entrance into a Hezbollah bunker, 100 meters away from a UNIFIL base, and 60 meters from a UNIFIL guard tower. It’s becoming apparent that UNIFIL isn’t truly neutral, and if they are that neglectful or incompetent, staying there puts them at risk, while Israel fights back.