Israeli artillery strikes targeted the headquarters of the Indonesian contingent of the UNIFIL peacekeepers in Adshit al-Qusayr, in the Marjayoun District of southern Lebanon on Sunday, killing two of the peacekeepers and injuring two others.
The attack comes amid the expansion of the Israeli ground invasion, and while the UN equivocated, saying that they couldn’t confirm that the blast was actually the result of the active Israeli artillery strike on the base, there seems to be little real doubt as to the cause. The IDF has yet to comment on the matter.
One of the slain was identified as Pfc. Farizal Rhomadhon, a 28-year-old Indonesian Army member serving in the peacekeeper contingent. Initial reports were that one was killed and three wounded, one severely so, so later updates reporting two killed suggest one of the wounded did not survive.
Indonesia’s Foreign Ministry promised a full investigation into the matter, while the UN warned that a deliberate attack on UNIFIL peacekeepers was a “grave violation of international humanitarian law.”
Multiple European nations also issued statements of condemnation for the incident, with Spanish PM Pedro Sanchez saying “a new red line” had been crossed. Spain is one of multiple EU nations that also contributes peacekeepers to the UNIFIL mission.
Israel has repeatedly condemned the peacekeepers as undermining Israeli military goals in the region, and therefore being secretly in league with Hezbollah. Intermittent attacks on peacekeepers have been reported for years, while the UNIFIL denies allegations of Hezbollah ties.
While Israel firing on the UNIFIL is not particularly unusual, actually killing them is, and coming as it does concurrent to other war crimes in Lebanon, including deliberately killing reporters and health care workers, it is likely to lead to more international repercussions.
