A Hezbollah bomb wounded a group of UNIFIL workers in Southern Lebanon on March 30 that initial reports attributed to the Jewish state, the Israel Defense Forces said on Wednesday.
IDF Arabic-language spokesman Lt. Col. Avichay Adraee tweeted that the injuries to the U.N. peacekeeping force members were caused by an explosive device planted by the Iranian terrorist proxy.
#عاجل حسب المعلومات المتوفرة لدى جيش الدفاع فالانفجار الذي وقع السبت الماضي (30/3) في #رميش والذي أسفر عن إصابة عدد من عناصر قوات اليونيفيل الدولية ناجم عن تعرض دورية #اليونيفيل لتفجير عبوة ناسفة كان قد زرعها #حزب_الله في هذه المنطقة سابقًا pic.twitter.com/lnK4br5isc
— افيخاي ادرعي (@AvichayAdraee) April 3, 2024
The Israeli government had already denied the reports that it had struck a UNIFIL vehicle in the Rmeish area. Three U.N. observers—Norwegian, Chilean and Australian nationals—and a translator were wounded when the bomb exploded near them as they were conducting a foot patrol.
UNIFIL deploys 10,000 “blue helmet” staffers in Southern Lebanon. It is the U.N.'s longest-running observer mission, operating since 1978.
Israel has been engaged in a low-intensity conflict with Hezbollah since the terrorist group joined the current war in support of Hamas following the Oct. 7 atrocities in the northwestern Negev. Tens of thousands of Israelis have been evacuated from areas close to the northern border that have seen near-daily rocket, mortar and drone attacks from Lebanon.
