India has called for the protection of UN peacekeepers in Lebanon, who are in the midst of a heightened confrontation between Israel and Hezbollah in the fallout of the Iran war.  A joint statement by India and 29 other countries said Peacekeepers must never be the target of attacks or intimidation of any kind and urged all parties, under all circumstances, to ensure the safety and security of these personnel and their premises in accordance with international law. 

 

With India’s Permanent Representative P. Harish at his side, France’s Permanent Representative Jerome Bonnafont read out the statement outside the UN Security Council before it met to discuss the situation in Lebanon. Three Ghanaian peacekeepers were injured in their base last week amid heavy firing in an area of Southern Lebanon. 

 

The statement condemned in the strongest terms Hezbollah’s reckless decision to join the Iranian attacks against Israel, which dragged Lebanon in a war neither its authorities nor its population wanted.