3 UNIFIL peacekeepers hurt in south Lebanon blast; IDF blames Hezbollah rocket

UN peacekeeping force says two troops seriously injured; IDF says examination of rocket’s trajectory ‘clearly indicates’ it was launched by Iran-backed terror group

Three United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) peacekeepers were wounded Friday in a blast at one of its positions in the country’s south near the Israeli border, including two seriously, the peacekeeping force said.

It marked the third incident of UNIFIL troops being wounded in days.

According to the Israeli military, the explosion at the base near Odaisseh was caused by a Hezbollah-fired rocket.

“An examination of the launch trajectory clearly indicates that the firing was carried out by the Hezbollah terror organization,” the IDF said.

The IDF published a map of the area, showing the trajectory of the purported Hezbollah rocket launch at the UNIFIL base.

In its statement announcing that its troops were wounded, UNIFIL said: “We do not yet know the origin of the explosion.”

On Thursday, another rocket hit a UNIFIL base in southern Lebanon, causing no injuries and minor property damage, according to Italy, the second-largest contributor to UNIFIL.

The rocket was of “unknown origin,” Italy said.

Days earlier, two UNIFIL troops of Indonesian origin were killed in an explosion southern Lebanon, which Israel blamed on roadside bombs it said were placed by Hezbollah.

Another Indonesian soldier was killed overnight Sunday into Monday when a projectile exploded near one of the group’s positions. According to a UN security source, the peacekeeper was killed by Israeli fire.

In early March, Israeli tank fire wounded three Ghanaian peacekeepers with UNIFIL. Israel voiced regret over that incident.

UNIFIL is stationed in southern Lebanon to monitor hostilities along the demarcation line with Israel — an area that is at the heart of clashes between Israeli troops and Iran-backed Hezbollah fighters. The mission, which will be halted at the end of 2026, has been sporadically caught in the crosshairs of both Israel and Hezbollah over the last couple of years, but with Israel launching a ground operation to stem persistent rocket and drone fire from the terror group, the peacekeeping force now faces greater risk.

UN Security Council Resolution 1701, among other provisions, states that no armed forces should be operating in southern Lebanon except the UN peacekeepers and the Lebanese military.

In line with a Security Council decision, UNIFIL will cease operations at the end of 2026 and withdraw in 2027. As of March, UNIFIL had 7,505 peacekeepers from 47 nations.

Israel has long argued that the observer force has failed in its mission, doing little to block Hezbollah from building up its forces near the Israeli border over the decades.