Hezbollah Vows to Spare Israeli Troops Near Peacekeepers

Hezbollah has instructed its fighters to refrain from attacking Israeli forces who have positioned themselves behind a U.N. peacekeeping base near the Lebanese border village of Maroun al-Ras. This directive was issued following a statement from UNIFIL, the U.N. peacekeeping operation, which labeled Israel’s nearby military activities as “extremely dangerous” and a threat to their peacekeepers’ safety. UNIFIL had also noted that it had repeatedly communicated its concerns to Israel.

The decision by Hezbollah was intended to protect the lives of U.N. peacekeepers, according to a statement from one of its field commanders. Hezbollah has accused Israel of using the U.N. forces as human shields in these operations.

Despite suggestions from Israel that UNIFIL should relocate, the peacekeeping body confirmed on Saturday that it would maintain its positions along the border. Meanwhile, Israel has recently announced its intention to conduct limited ground operations into southern Lebanon.

Over the past week, there have been several clashes and attempted infiltrations by Israeli troops near Maroun al-Ras, as reported by Hezbollah.

Since September 23, Israel has escalated its military actions in Lebanon, resulting in over 1,110 deaths and displacing hundreds of thousands. These developments come amidst an already severe economic crisis in Lebanon.

The deployment of the Lebanese army and U.N. peacekeepers in southern Lebanon was a key provision of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701, which was aimed at ending the 2006 conflict between Israel and Hezbollah.