Southern Lebanon: Israeli tank fired near UN peacekeepers

Israeli tank fire has occurred near UN Interim Force (UNIFIL) peacekeepers stationed in southern Lebanon, as reported by The New Arab and agencies on January 13th.

The incident occurred on January 12th and is seemingly part of a broader pattern of Israeli fire near or towards UNIFIL personnel, who also said that less than two weeks ago, gunfire from an Israeli position hit close to peacekeepers twice.

A statement from the force said that “UNIFIL peacekeepers observed two Merkava tanks move from an Israeli army position inside Lebanese territory further into Lebanon.”

Peacekeepers have acted as a buffer between Israel and Lebanon for decades, and have been working to enforce the November 2024 ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hezbollah.

Under the ceasefire terms, Israeli forces were expected to withdraw from Lebanon, and both sides were ordered to stop hostilities; Hezbollah was also required to disarm and dismantle its military presence north of the Litani River.

However, under the guise of fighting Hezbollah, Israel has maintained a military presence in five areas of southern Lebanon, and reportedly conducts near-daily raids on nearby villages.

Israel has justified its repeated strikes by claiming that they are targeting Hezbollah infrastructure, such as weapons storage facilities. Despite repeated Israeli attacks and US pressure, the Shia militant group has refused to disarm.

On December 22nd, three people were killed when a strike hit the vehicle they were travelling in near the coastal city of Sidon. The Israeli military described the victims as “Hezbollah terrorists.”

Similarly, three people were killed in separate targeted attacks by Israel on December 14th, with all three fatalities occurring in southern Lebanon.

Hezbollah has previously declared that it has “a legitimate right to resist Israeli occupation” amid escalating Israeli military operations in southern Lebanon.

In November, Israel warned it could accelerate its operations in Lebanon, with Defence Minister Israel Katz stating that “Hezbollah is playing with fire, and the president of Lebanon is dragging his feet.”

Targeted strikes by Israel are not limited to alleged Hezbollah targets, as 13 people were killed on November 18th when an airstrike reportedly targeted the Ain al-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp near Sidon.

Israel claimed the strike hit a Hamas facility, a claim that Hamas officials rejected. In a statement, they described the allegations as “pure fabrication” used to justify Israeli “criminal aggression.”

On July 29th, Israel’s army admitted to violating the ceasefire terms with Hezbollah on hundreds of occasions since November 2024, such as by carrying out roughly 500 strikes.

The New Arab and agencies, Maghrebi.org