Irish PM demands Israel ‘stop firing’ at UN peacekeepers
Ireland accounts for 347 of the 10,000 soldiers serving in the UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon
Two Sri Lankan and two Indonesian peacekeepers had been hurt by Israeli fire
Updated 12 October 2024
AFP
DUBLIN, Ireland: Irish Prime Minister Simon Harris on Saturday urged Israel to heed “the concerns of the international community” and not repeat recent firing on UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon.
“Israel must stop firing on UN peacekeepers serving with UNIFIL in Lebanon,” Ireland’s leader said in a statement, his latest comments on the recent incidents that have sparked a fierce diplomatic backlash.
“Israel must listen to the voice and the concerns of the international community,” he added.
Vehicles of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) patrol in Marjeyoun in southern Lebanon on October 11, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Hezbollah and Israel. (AFP)
Ireland accounts for 347 of the 10,000 soldiers serving in the UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon, UNIFIL, which is charged with maintaining peace in the south of Lebanon.
Israel said its forces fired at a threat near a UNIFIL position in Lebanon Friday, acknowledging that a “hit” was responsible for wounding two Blue Helmets.
The two Sri Lankan peacekeepers were hurt at UNIFIL’s main base in Naqura, southern Lebanon, according to the mission.
It follows two Indonesian soldiers suffering injuries when tank fire hit a watchtower the previous day, the mission said.
The Irish Defense Forces has said none of its staff were hurt in Thursday’s incident.
Harris, who visited US President Joe Biden earlier in the week, said in the statement he and Biden “agreed that those who serve in Blue Helmets on behalf of the UN must always be afforded full protection.”
‘Not Winston Churchill’: Trump steps up criticism of UK’s Starmer
Trump criticized Starmer’s decision to cede sovereignty of the Chagos Islands, home to the Diego Garcia air base, saying that they have ‘been very, very uncooperative with with that stupid island’
Donald Trump: ‘France has been great. They’ve all been great. The UK has been much different from others’
Updated 10 sec ago
LONDON/WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump intensified his criticism of Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Tuesday, saying his lack of immediate support for US strikes on Iran showed “this is not Winston Churchill we’re dealing with.” Trump has lashed out at Starmer three times this week after he said neither the British military, or its air bases, were involved in the initial US and Israeli strikes on Tehran that killed Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Starmer told parliament that the government had learnt from its mistakes in backing the US in the 2003 Iraq war, and said any military action must have a “viable, thought-through plan.” He also said he did not believe in “regime change from the skies.” But Starmer has since allowed the US to use UK bases to launch what he called limited and defensive strikes to weaken Tehran’s capabilities, after Iran hit US allies in the region with drones and missiles. On Monday, a British base in Cyprus was hit by a drone that Cypriot officials said was likely launched by Iran-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah, prompting London to send a destroyer and more helicopters with counter-drone technology to the region. Trump told reporters during a meeting in the Oval Office with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz that he was very disappointed with Britain. “This is not Winston Churchill that we’re dealing with,” he said, comparing Starmer with Britain’s revered wartime leader. Trump also criticized Starmer’s decision to cede sovereignty of the Chagos Archipelago, home to the US-UK air base of Diego Garcia, saying they have “been very, very uncooperative with that stupid island.”
Starmer has been criticized from all sides at home for his decision, with opponents on the left calling for him to condemn the military action while on the right, opposition leaders Kemi Badenoch and Nigel Farage attacked Starmer for failing to back Britain’s key security and intelligence ally. Britain has long prided itself on its relationship with the US, aided by British leaders such as Churchill, Margaret Thatcher and Tony Blair cultivating strong relationships with their counterparts, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush. Starmer, a center-left former lawyer, surprised his critics when he too struck up a solid relationship with Trump, but that has been tested in the last year as the US leader became more combative on a number of fronts. Trump earlier told the Sun newspaper he never thought he would see Britain become a reluctant partner, instead heaping praise on France and Germany. “This was the most solid relationship of all,” he said. “And now we have very strong relationships with other countries in Europe.” “France has been great. They’ve all been great. The UK has been much different from others.” Britain, France and Germany released a joint statement in response to Iranian attacks on Saturday, saying they were in close contact with the US, Israel and partners in the region, and were calling for a resumption of negotiations. Starmer has defended his response, telling parliament on Monday he had to judge what was in Britain’s national interest. “That is what I have done, and I stand by it,” he said. Polling published by YouGov on Tuesday showed people in Britain were opposed to the US strikes on Iran by 49 percent to 28 percent.
