Italy sees the attack on the peace mission in Lebanon as a “very serious violation” of law

Italy sees the attack on the peace mission in Lebanon as a “very serious violation” of law
Italy sees the attack on the peace mission in Lebanon as a “very serious violation” of law

Rome, Oct 10 (EFE).- The Italian Government warned Israel this Thursday that the attacks on the headquarters of the United Nations Interim Force for Lebanon (UNIFIL) represent a “very serious violation” of international humanitarian law and assured that they are not “justified” by any military necessity.

The Italian Minister of Defense, Guido Crosetto, took stock in a press conference on the situation of the peace mission, in which 1,256 Italian soldiers are deployed, and reported that he has already conveyed to the Israeli authorities the strong unrest of Rome.

In the attack on a surveillance tower at the Finul headquarters, two soldiers were injured – none of them Italian as they were in a bunker as a precaution – but the projectiles did hit some Italian assets in the area.

The minister opined that “the hostile acts repeatedly carried out by Israeli forces at base 131 could constitute war crimes” and stressed that “they surely involve very serious violations of the norms of international humanitarian law.”

Crosetto, who appeared alongside General Francesco Figliuolo, announced that next week he will hold a conversation with his Spanish counterpart, Margarita Robles, and the Frenchman, Sébastien Lecornu, as major contributors to the peace mission.

“The situation in that part of Lebanon worries us, not since today, but what happened yesterday is totally unacceptable. We do not accept the justification that the Israeli forces had notified UNIFIL,” said the minister.

Because, he noted, “the United Nations and Italy cannot receive orders from Israel,” and this was made known to the ambassador of the Jewish State in Rome, Jonathan Peled, in a meeting held in which the diplomat “was unable to explain.” the facts.

Italy has also conveyed its concern to the Deputy Secretary General of the United Nations, Jean-Pierre Lacroix, responsible for the Department of Peacekeeping Operations.

The Italian minister assured that “this has not been a mistake or an accident” and therefore asked Israel for “formal and real explanations as soon as possible.”

Regarding the permanence of the mission, Crosetto recalled that this “is not a national but an international decision” by the UN, but he advanced the permanence of the Italian contingent, for now.

“My idea, that of the Government, is to make a space of peace prevail and not take for granted that in that region there can only be a continuous war. We have already seen in other places how difficult it is to eradicate a linked war. We must maintain the flag of peace until it is possible,” he noted.

The Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, called these events “inadmissible” this Thursday. EFE

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