LAST UPDATE | 9 Nov 2025

THE UNITED NATIONS has called on Israel to stop attacks near peacekeepers after a convoy of Irish troops came close to an air strike in Lebanon.

Irish troops were just a few hundred metres away as an Israeli drone strike blew up a van near Bint Jbeil yesterday, The Journal has learned.

It is understood the soldiers, serving with the UNIFIL mission, were in United Nations liveried Armoured Utility Vehicles (AUV) when the blast happened in front of them on a roadway in the busy town.

An image, from local south Lebanese freelance media, has emerged online showing the scene of the blast and an Irish UN liveried vehicle is clearly visible near to the blast site. 

No injuries were reported for the peacekeepers in the incident and the Irish soldiers followed their tactical procedures and left the area while the damage was being assessed. 

The vehicle, thought to be a van, was burned out in the strike and reports said at least seven local people were injured.  

Bint Jbeil is a short distance from the main Irish camp, UNP 2-45 which is also known as Camp Shamrock. The town is a well known stronghold for Hezbollah and has suffered huge damage in fighting in the last year or so.

It is not the first time Irish soldiers have been close to air strikes on patrol. In August 2024 there was a bombing as two vehicles passed a building that was struck. The AUV they were travelling in was damaged but they avoided injury.

A UNIFIL spokeswoman explained how events unfolded in Lebanon and called on the IDF to stop launching the attacks. 

“Yesterday morning peacekeepers in a vehicle patrol moving near Bint Jbeil heard an explosion about 500 meters away. A few minutes later they came upon a vehicle in flames, so they rerouted and continued their activity.

“There was no damage or injury to the patrol. Peacekeepers continue to monitor and report on the situation in south Lebanon and we have robust security measures in place for their safety.

“We have repeatedly called on the IDF to refrain from attacks near peacekeepers and civilians and allow us to carry out our tasks without obstruction,” she said. 

Multiple strikes

While there are no reports of deaths near the Irish troops a total of three people have been killed in several bombings with several people wounded according to the Lebanese health ministry.

In a statement on its Telegram channel the Israeli Defence Force (IDF) said they had carried out the strikes across the south Lebanon area. 

They claimed they were targeting Hezbollah members and weapons smugglers in a series of incidents.

A strike in the Shebaa area to the east was on two brothers who were suspected members of Lebanese Resistance Brigades, a group allied with Hezbollah.

Lebanon’s official National News Agency reported that two brothers from the town of Shebaa were hit while driving on a road on the slopes of Mount Hermon in the southeast, “causing their SUV to catch fire and resulting in their deaths”.

Lebanon’s health ministry confirmed the death toll in Shebaa, and later reported that another strike on a car in the southern village of Baraashit had killed one person and wounded four.

The Israeli military later claimed the strike in Baraashit, saying it had killed a Hezbollah member who “was involved in attempts to rehabilitate Hezbollah military infrastructure”.

The latest attacks came as the European Union added its voice to international concern over Israel’s continued strikes despite the nearly year-old truce.

“Focus by all parties must be on preserving the ceasefire and the progress achieved so far,” the European Commission’s foreign affairs spokesman Anouar El Anouni said.

Israel argues that Lebanon is acting too slowly to disarm Hezbollah and insists it has the right to carry out operations to protect its border and citizens from attack.

On Thursday it announced a series of strikes in southern Lebanon in advance, and urged civilians to evacuate the targeted areas.

A statement has been requested from the Irish Defence Forces. 

With reporting from AFP.