Lebanon Teeters on Edge as Defense Minister Confronts ‘Gross Assault’ on UN Peacekeepers

Lebanon Teeters on Edge as Defense Minister Confronts ‘Gross Assault’ on UN Peacekeepers

The minister said during a press conference yesterday, Thursday, following the injury of two Indonesian UNIFIL soldiers and the destruction of cameras at the Italian base there: “Beirut is a city where different cultures and religions coexist, and Lebanon has a democratic sensitivity.”

The Italian minister believed that Lebanon’s problem lies in the fact that it has received “two million refugees, a percentage of refugees compared to the population that does not exist in any other country in the world.”

He added: “In recent years we have pretended not to notice this. A situation that would have caused everything, anywhere, to explode. Until now, though, Lebanon has maintained a fragile balance, thrust into a crisis by this Israeli attack.

In a related context, Minister Crosetto announced that “in agreement with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, as part of my powers, this afternoon I summoned the Israeli ambassador to Italy and strongly protested with him.”

He added: “I asked him to officially inform the Israeli Minister of Defense and the Chief of Staff that what is happening in southern Lebanon towards the battalion and headquarters, and in particular towards the Italian UNIFIL bases, is completely unacceptable, as it clearly contradicts international law and constitutes a clear violation of Resolution 1701.”

He continued in his statement: “No Italian soldier was injured,” after “Israeli army soldiers neutralized some components of the video surveillance system at Base 1-31, the lighting system and the radio signal repeater at Base 1-32A with small arms fire, and this was followed by Flying a drone.”

Source: Italian “Aki”.

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