A French soldier serving with the UN mission UNIFIL in Lebanon was killed and three others injured and evacuated, with the Iran-backed Hezbollah militia likely responsible, French President Emmanuel Macron confirmed on X on Saturday.
“Everything suggests that responsibility for this attack lies with Hezbollah,” Macron wrote on X in English. He demanded that the Lebanese government immediately arrest those responsible.
The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) also said that according to an initial assessment, Hezbollah fighters were responsible for the attack.
Later in the day, Hezbollah rejected responsibility for the incident. In a statement, it urged caution in assigning blame and said it was awaiting the Lebanese army’s investigation into the circumstances
UNIFIL said its soldiers had been clearing explosive devices from a road in the south in the morning, when they came under attack.
Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam condemned the attack in the strongest terms, saying it harmed Lebanon and its relations with friendly countries worldwide. France remains traditionally closely linked to Lebanon as a former mandate power.
Lebanon’s President Joseph Aoun also spoke to Macron by phone after the attack.
The country’s foreign ministry condemned the attack and said Lebanese authorities will conduct an investiation and punish the perpetrators. It condemned repeated violations and attacks against UNIFIL by both the Israeli army and “Hezbollah elements.”
UNIFIL’s blue helmets have been monitoring the border area between Israel and Lebanon since 1978. There have repeatedly been dead and wounded in their ranks.
A few weeks ago, two Indonesian soldiers serving with the UNIFIL mission were killed in an explosion.