Irish Prime Minister Simon Harris on Saturday urged Israel to heed “the concerns of the international community” and not repeat recent firing on UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon.
“Israel must stop firing on UN peacekeepers serving with UNIFIL in Lebanon,” Ireland’s leader said in a statement, his latest comments on the recent incidents that have sparked a fierce diplomatic backlash.
“Israel must listen to the voice and the concerns of the international community,” he added. Ireland accounts for 347 of the 10,000 soldiers serving in the UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon, UNIFIL, which is charged with maintaining peace in the south of Lebanon.
Israel said its forces fired at a threat near a UNIFIL position in Lebanon Friday, acknowledging that a “hit” was responsible for wounding two Blue Helmets. The two Sri Lankan peacekeepers were hurt at UNIFIL’s main base in Naqura, southern Lebanon, according to the mission.
It follows two Indonesian soldiers suffering injuries when tank fire hit a watchtower the previous day, the mission said. The Irish Defense Forces has said none of its staff were hurt in Thursday’s incident.
Harris, who visited US President Joe Biden earlier in the week, said in the statement he and Biden “agreed that those who serve in Blue Helmets on behalf of the UN must always be afforded full protection.”