Israel UN headquarters in Lebanon shelled - two injured

According to the United Nations, Israeli troops have fired on the headquarters of the UN mission Unifil in Lebanon, injuring at least two UN soldiers.

An Israeli army tank had directly hit a United Nations observation post, a spokesman said. These are the first casualties in the ranks of the blue helmet mission since the start of Israel's ground offensive in Lebanon against the pro-Iranian Hezbollah militia around a week ago.

The Israeli army did not initially confirm or provide details of the incident when asked.

The UN mission has been monitoring the border area for decades. More than 10,000 UN soldiers from more than 50 countries are involved, including Germans. Many of the UN troops come from Indonesia, Italy and India, among others.

The shelling occurred in Nakura in the southern border area. On the Mediterranean coast, it is the first major town in Lebanon close to the demarcation line with Israel. The Unifil mission has its headquarters here. This and the surrounding area were "repeatedly hit", explained the Unifil spokesperson. The two UN soldiers were not seriously injured, but were hospitalized after the attack. Another Israeli attack had also hit the entrance to a bunker in which UN soldiers had sought shelter. UN vehicles and a communication system were also damaged.

Israel's army launched a ground offensive in Lebanon a week ago and is fighting against the Islamist Hezbollah there, according to its own statements. At the same time, the danger of possible clashes with the Lebanese army and UN soldiers is increasing. The Lebanese army is not directly involved in the conflict, but it too has already reported fatalities following clashes with Israeli troops.

Ireland's President Michael D. Higgins, whose country is providing more than 300 of the UN soldiers, had previously sharply criticized Israel's actions. A few days ago, Higgins announced that Israel's army had threatened the peacekeepers and wanted them to be evacuated. Israel had even demanded that the entire Unifil mission leave the border area.

A few days ago, the UN mission had already expressed its "deep concern" about the activities of the Israeli military "in the immediate vicinity" of one of its posts. It was referring to an attack near Marun ar-Ras in the border area further east of Nakura.