NEW YORK CITY: Israeli drones, fighter aircraft and helicopters violated Lebanese airspace 143 times over the weekend, UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon reported. No rocket or artillery fire from Hezbollah or other armed groups was detected during that time.

The UN Interim Force in Lebanon recorded the violations between Friday and Sunday, Stephane Dujarric, the spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, told reporters in New York on Monday.

The peacekeepers also observed several airstrikes in both the eastern and western sectors covered by their mission. During the three days, UNIFIL recorded a total of 166 projectile trajectories, all of which were attributed to the Israeli military, Dujarric said.

“UNIFIL did not detect any rocket or artillery projectile launches by Hezbollah and other armed groups,” he added.

The international peacekeepers, also known as “Blue Helmets” because of their distinctive protective headwear, also observed 12 Israeli naval vessels entering Lebanese territorial waters off the coast of Naqoura, in UNIFIL’s Sector West, Dujarric continued.

The peacekeeping mission continued to support the delivery of aid in Lebanon, he said, and in coordination with the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, UNIFIL facilitated two humanitarian missions over the weekend, one in each of its sectors.

The latest figures for Israeli attacks come as southern Lebanon remains under heavy military pressure, months after Hezbollah and Israeli forces resumed hostilities on March 2 amid the wider regional conflict between Iran and the US.

Israeli forces have occupied a strip of territory in southern Lebanon extending about 10 kilometers beyond the border, which authorities in Israel describe as a “buffer zone.” Israeli strikes have killed more than 4,300 people in Lebanon since March, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry. An agreement between Israel and Lebanon in June produced only a fragile pause in hostilities.

UNIFIL has monitored the area since its peacekeeping mission was established in 1978, but its mandate is due to expire at the end of this year after it was renewed for a final time in August last year. Lebanon has urged the UN to reconsider the withdrawal of the mission, warning that it could leave a dangerous security vacuum.