JERUSALEM: The Israeli military said its forces fired at a threat near a UN peacekeeping mission position on Friday in southern Lebanon, and acknowledged that a “hit” was responsible for wounding two people, after an inital examination of the incident.
Israeli “soldiers operating in southern Lebanon identified an immediate threat against them. The soldiers responded with fire toward the threat. An initial examination indicates that during the incident, a hit was identified on a UNIFIL post, located approximately 50 meters (yards) from the source of the threat, resulting in the injury of two UNIFIL personnel,” the statement said.
It came after the UN mission said two of its peacekeepers were injured after explosions close to an observation tower at its Naqura headquarters.
It was the second incident of its kind reported by UNIFIL in two days, after two other Blue Helmets were injured on Thursday, sparking global condemnation.
Hours before Friday’s incident, “the IDF instructed UNIFIL personnel to enter into protected spaces and remain there. This instruction was in place at the time of the incident,” the military added.
The statement came shortly after the military said it was “conducting a thorough review” to determine details of attacks on UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon, after the four mission members were injured.
“The IDF expresses deep concern over incidents of this kind and is currently conducting a thorough review at the highest levels of command to determine the details,” the military said.
UN peacekeepers patrolling the Lebanese side of the border with Israel have been thrust into the violence of the Israel-Hezbollah war that has killed more than 1,200 people in Lebanon, according to an AFP tally of Lebanese health ministry figures, and displaced a million others.
Israeli army says fired at ‘immediate threat’ near UN position in Lebanon
https://arab.news/c7cmt
Israeli army says fired at ‘immediate threat’ near UN position in Lebanon
- An initial examination indicates that during the incident, a hit was identified on a UNIFIL post
- It came after the UN mission said two of its peacekeepers were injured after explosions close to an observation tower at its Naqura headquarters
Israel police to deploy around Al-Aqsa for Ramadan, Palestinians report curbs
- The Al-Aqsa compound is a central symbol of Palestinian identity and also a frequent flashpoint
JERUSALEM: Israeli police said Monday that they would deploy in force around the Al-Aqsa Mosque during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which begins this week, as Palestinian officials accused Israel of imposing restrictions at the compound.
Over the course of the month of fasting and prayer, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians traditionally attend prayers at Al-Aqsa — Islam’s third-holiest site, located in east Jerusalem, which Israel captured in 1967 and later annexed.
Arad Braverman, a senior Jerusalem police officer, said forces would be deployed “day and night” across the compound, known to Jews as the Temple Mount, and in the surrounding area.
He said thousands of police would also be on duty for Friday prayers, which draw the largest crowds of Muslim worshippers.
Braverman said police had recommended issuing 10,000 permits for Palestinians from the occupied West Bank, who require special permission to enter Jerusalem.
He did not say whether age limits would apply, adding that the final number of people would be decided by the government.
The Palestinian Jerusalem Governorate said in a separate statement it had been informed that permits would again be restricted to men over 55 and women over 50, mirroring last year’s criteria.
It said Israeli authorities had blocked the Islamic Waqf — the Jordanian?run body administering the site — from carrying out routine preparations, including installing shade structures and setting up temporary medical clinics.
A Waqf source confirmed the restrictions and said 33 of its employees had been barred from entering the compound in the week before Ramadan.
The Al-Aqsa compound is a central symbol of Palestinian identity and also a frequent flashpoint.
Under long?standing arrangements, Jews may visit the compound — which they revere as the site of their second temple, destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD — but they are not permitted to pray there.
Israel says it is committed to maintaining this status quo, though Palestinians fear it is being eroded.
Braverman reiterated Monday that no changes were planned.
In recent years, a growing number of Jewish ultranationalists have challenged the prayer ban, including far?right politician Itamar Ben-Gvir, who prayed at the site while serving as national security minister in 2024 and 2025.
