The contingent of approximately 10,000 peacekeeping troops deployed under the auspices united nations in southern Lebanon called for de-escalation of the increasingly intense conflict between Israel and Hezbollah and warned that continued Israeli military action would not bring a lasting solution to the crisis along the war-torn border.

“Dialogue and de-escalation are more important than ever,” said UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) spokesperson Kandice Ardiel. Newsweek. “UNIFIL strongly believes that the issues should be addressed at the negotiating table, through a political and diplomatic solution – not through violence and not through violation of international resolutions or international law.”

But the conflict has only deepened since the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) launched a ground offensive against Hezbollah, also spelled Hezbollah, earlier this month. The operation was carried out amid worsening clashes between the two sides, as the Lebanese group began launching daily cross-border strikes in solidarity with the Palestinians. Hamas movement, which launched a massive attack against Israel last year, sparking a year-long war in the Gaza Strip.

Now UNIFIL, already the deadliest of the many UN peacekeeping missions, is caught in the crossfire. Ardiel said peacekeepers had reported more than two dozen incidents this month in which personnel were injured or their positions were damaged. She said most of these attacks were attributed to the IDF, which “repeatedly targeted our positions,” while others were of “unknown” origin.

She also said Hizbullah’s “missile launches from locations near our positions put peacekeepers at risk,” although the group’s disarmament under the UN Security Council resolution that ended the last war in 2006 was not in the peacekeeping force—nor could it be effectively achieved by an additional Israeli force.

“The proliferation of arms outside of state control in Lebanon is a flagrant violation of 1701, but UNIFIL has no mandate to disarm Hezbollah or other groups by force,” Ardiel said. “The removal of unauthorized weapons from southern Lebanon can only be achieved through the full implementation of resolution 1701. Military action by Israel will not solve this in a lasting way.”

Newsweek has contacted the IDF for comment.

In a video address issued on October 14, the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismissed allegations that the IDF deliberately targeted UNIFIL positions as “completely false”.

“It’s the exact opposite,” Netanyahu said at the time. “Israel has repeatedly called on UNIFIL to get out of harm’s way. He repeatedly asked them to temporarily leave the battle zone, which is right next to Israel’s border with Lebanon.”

The Israeli prime minister said that “Hezbollah is using UNIFIL facilities while attacking Israeli cities and communities.” He expressed “regret” for the harm to UNIFIL personnel, but said “the best way to ensure the safety of UNIFIL personnel is to heed Israel’s request and get out of harm’s way.”

A Hezbollah spokesman said Newsweek that allegations that its fighters were operating near UNIFIL positions were “untrue” and instead accused Israeli troops of covering UN peacekeeping sites.

“On the contrary, when the enemy Zionist forces took cover behind UNIFIL positions on several previous occasions, despite the fact that the resistance was exposed to danger, they did not approach or direct any bullets or anything towards the UNIFIL positions for fear of their lives,” Hezbollah said. the spokesman said. “The resistance will certainly not attack the forces.”

Ardiel also referred to an incident on October 13 where “two IDF Merkava tanks forced their way into one of our positions and took cover for 45 minutes, saying it was to avoid fire” . In two other incidents, she added, Israeli forces directed small arms fire and tanks against UNIFIL sites on October 10 in Naqoura and October 22 in Dhayra.

“While no peacekeepers were injured in these two incidents,” she added, “five peacekeepers were injured in the previous ones (as well as 15 peacekeepers who suffered symptoms after they inhaled an unknown smoke).

UNIFIL reported on Friday that its peacekeepers withdrew from Dhayra after the IDF fired on their position.

During the Israeli operation in Lebanon, “IDF damage included the destruction of perimeter monitoring cameras, lighting, walls and fences; demolishing an observation tower and more,” said Ardiel.

As for Hezbollah, she said UNIFIL personnel had “identified a number of locations of interest, including a tunnel in Labbouneh that was later cleared of vegetation and highlighted by the IDF.” When UNIFIL expressed its willingness to assist the Lebanese Armed Forces in inspecting the area, however, she said that “the Lebanese authorities have informed us that this activity is on private property, which we would not be able to access without the facilitation of the Lebanese Army.”

“We have repeatedly reminded all actors of their obligations under international law to ensure the safety and security of UN personnel and property and to respect at all times the inviolability of UN premises,” Ardiel said. “Deliberate attacks on peacekeepers are serious violations of international humanitarian law and Security Council resolution 1701.”

Of the 71 peacekeeping operations conducted by the UN around the world since the department was first established to monitor the Arab-Israeli ceasefire in 1948, UNIFIL has recorded the most casualties since its establishment three decades later. Approximately 337 personnel were killed during the mission.

Today, UNIFIL consists of 10,017 personnel from 48 nations, the largest contributors of which are Indonesia, Italy, India, Ghana, Nepal, Malaysia, Spain, France, China and Ireland, whose forces have defied Israeli orders to withdraw during a high level. profile incident earlier this month.

The current conflict marks the third time that UNIFIL personnel have been caught up in a major conflict in southern Lebanon. The peacekeeping mission was first established in 1978 amid Lebanon’s multilateral civil war and a week-long Israeli invasion to target Palestinian militias operating in the area.

Israel launched a second invasion of war-torn Lebanon in 1982 and would occupy parts of the country until 2000. During this time, Hezbollah would emerge as the most powerful of several factions fighting Israeli troops and their Lebanese militia ally, South Lebanon’s army, and the group continued to retain its weapons after the end of Lebanon’s civil war in 1990 and the withdrawal of Israeli forces a decade later.

With Iran’s support, Hezbollah continued to expand its arsenal. After a period of occasional clashes on the Israel-Lebanon border, a month-long war broke out in 2006 in response to a deadly Hezbollah cross-border raid, culminating in a ceasefire backed by UN Security Council resolution 1701.

“UNIFIL supports the Lebanese and Israeli authorities in the implementation of Resolution 1701 which, from 2006 to 2023, led to an unprecedented period of stability,” Ardiel said. “This was despite the fact that neither side had fully implemented their obligations under the resolution.”

“But by leveraging our liaison and coordination mechanisms, our direct conversations with authorities on both sides, and impartial monitoring and reporting of violations,” she added, “we were able to help avoid significant escalation all these years.”

Even before the outbreak of hostilities last October, Israel and Hezbollah had long accused each other of violating UN Security Council resolution 1701 by conducting activities along or across the border, known as The Blue Line. Israeli officials have too accused UNIFIL of not implementing the resolution by failing to prevent Hezbollah activity on the Lebanese side of the disputed border.

The current conflict shows little sign of abating. Israeli forces have expanded ground and air operations in Lebanon with the stated goal of returning tens of thousands of displaced Israelis to their northern communities, while Hezbollah vows to fight on even after suffering blows to his command and control, including the killing of former Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah.

Israel’s ally, the United States, supported the IDF’s decision to enter Lebanon, while saying it opposed another long-term occupation. Hezbollah’s ally Iran has continued to support the vanguard of its Axis of Resistance coalition, which also includes factions from Iraq, Syria and Yemen active in striking Israel.

Meanwhile, the decades-long rivalry between Iran and Israel has entered a new phase of direct conflict. Netanyahu has he promised to fight back in Iran in connection with a large-scale missile strike against Israel earlier this month in response to Israeli operations in the region, including the assassination of Iranian personnel and Iranian allies abroad.

But amid ongoing violence and threats of escalation, Ardiel said “peacekeepers remain in position” to carry out their tasks to restore calm.

“Despite what has happened since October 8, 2023, we still believe that with the commitment of the parties, we can return to stability and that Resolution 1701 is the framework to get there,” Ardiel said. “Peacekeepers stand ready to support any action agreement that will help achieve this.”