Netanyahu is asking the UN chief to move peacekeepers from southern Lebanon to ensure their safety

TEL AVIV: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called on the UN chief on Sunday to move UN peacekeepers deployed in southern Lebanon out of “harm’s path”.

Netanyahu’s call to UN chief Antonio Guterres comes a day after the UN Interim Force in Lebanon, known as UNIFIL, refused to withdraw from the border area despite five of its members be injured in Israeli fire in recent days.

“Mr. Secretary General, get the UNIFIL forces out of harm’s way. It should be done right now, immediately,” Netanyahu said in a video statement issued by his office, in what were his first comments on the issue.

Netanyahu, speaking at a cabinet meeting, said Israeli forces had asked UNIFIL several times to leave but had been “met with repeated refusals” that provided a “human shield for Hezbollah terrorists” .

“Your refusal to evacuate UNIFIL soldiers makes them hostages of Hezbollah. This endangers both them and the lives of our soldiers,” Netanyahu said.

“We regret the injuries to UNIFIL soldiers and are doing everything in our power to prevent such injury. But the simple and obvious way to ensure this is simply to remove them from the danger zone.”

UNIFIL has refused to abandon its positions in southern Lebanon.

“There was a unanimous decision to stay because it is important that the UN flag still flies high in this region and can report to the Security Council,” UNIFIL spokeswoman Andrea Tenenti said. AFP in an interview on Saturday.

Tenenti said Israel had asked UNIFIL to withdraw from positions “up to five kilometers (three miles) from the Blue Line” separating both countries, but the peacekeepers refused. This would have included its 29 positions in southern Lebanon.

UNIFIL, a mission of about 9,500 troops of various nationalities that was created in 1978, is tasked with overseeing a ceasefire that ended a 33-day war in 2006 between Israel and Hezbollah.

Forty nations contributing to the peacekeeping force in Lebanon said Saturday they “strongly condemn the recent attacks” against peacekeepers.

“These actions must be stopped immediately and properly investigated,” said the joint statement, released in X by the Polish UN mission and signed by nations including major contributors Indonesia, Italy and India.