“27 [ES] member states agreed to ask Israel to stop attacks on the UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon (UNIFIL),” Borrell told reporters ahead of a meeting of the bloc’s foreign ministers in Luxembourg.
“It is completely unacceptable to attack the soldiers of the United Nations,” the EU’s top diplomat emphasized.
UNIFIL – a mission with approximately 9,500 soldiers from different countries – was created after the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 1978.
The 40 countries that are part of UNIFIL said on Saturday that they “strongly condemn the recent attacks” on peacekeepers.
“Such actions must cease immediately and be properly investigated,” the joint statement said.
On Sunday, UNIFIL said it had demanded an explanation from the Israeli army for violations against the mission’s forces, including entering one of the positions.
On Sunday morning, Israeli tanks knocked down the gate of the UNIFIL position, and Israeli soldiers stayed in the territory of the UNIFIL position for 45 minutes, the mission announced.
In recent days, five peacekeepers were injured in attacks on UNIFIL positions in southern Lebanon. Israel is blamed for most of the attacks, the Associated Press news agency reported on Monday.