Israel says fired at 'immediate threat' near UN position in Lebanon

Israel said its forces fired at a threat near a UN peacekeeping position on Friday in Lebanon, acknowledging that a "hit" was responsible for wounding two Blue Helmets, an incident that has sparked diplomatic backlash.

The two Sri Lankan Blue Helmets were hurt at the main base of the UNIFIL force in Naqura in southern Lebanon, the day after two Indonesian soldiers were wounded when, according to the mission, its positions were "repeatedly hit".

As Israel faced condemnation from UN chief Antonio Guterres and even Western allies, its army pledged to carry out a "thorough review" while releasing its preliminary findings.

Israeli solders had responded with fire to "an immediate threat" around 50 metres (yards) from the UNIFIL post, the military said.

"An initial examination indicates that during the incident, a hit was identified on a UNIFIL post... resulting in the injury of two UNIFIL personnel," the statement added.

The UN peacekeeping mission has found itself on the frontline of the Israel-Hezbollah war that has killed more than 1,200 people in Lebanon, according to an AFP tally of Lebanese health ministry figures, and displaced a million others.

UN chief Antonio Guterres condemned the firing as "intolerable" and "a violation of international humanitarian law," while the British government said it was "appalled" by reports of the injuries.

France summoned the Israeli ambassador, while the White House said it was "deeply concerned" and reminded Israel that it was "critical that they not threaten UN peacekeepers' safety and security."

The incidents came nearly three weeks into Israel's war with Hezbollah in Lebanon, which has seen Israeli warplanes conduct extensive strikes since September 23 on the Iran-backed militants' strongholds and ground troops deployed across the border.

Israel launched its fourth ground invasion of Lebanon since 1978 on September 30.

- 'Immediate ceasefire' -

On the eve of Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar, air raid sirens were activated across areas of northwestern Israel after 80 projectiles were fired from Lebanon, the army said.

From sundown on Friday until nightfall on Saturday, Israeli markets will close, flights will stop and public transport will halt as most Jews fast and pray on the Day of Atonement.

Diplomatic efforts to negotiate an end to the fighting in Lebanon have so far failed, but Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati said his government would ask the UN Security Council to issue a new resolution calling for a "full and immediate ceasefire".

Mikati said that only the Lebanese army and peacekeepers should be deployed in the south of the country -- the essence of previous UN resolutions -- and "Hezbollah is in agreement on this issue".

Lebanon's army said an Israeli strike on one of its positions in south Lebanon killed two of its soldiers on Friday.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken backed efforts by the weak Lebanese state to assert itself over Hezbollah.

"It's clear that the people of Lebanon have an interest -- a strong interest -- in the state asserting itself and taking responsibility for the country and its future," he said.

Iran-backed Hezbollah is heavily armed and controls large swathes of Lebanon, and successive Lebanese governments have failed to subdue it.

The militia fought Israeli troops directly during Israel's last invasion in 2006, claiming victory afterwards.

- Beirut attack -

In Beirut, residents of a central area of the capital targeted by twin Israeli air strikes on Thursday night salvaged their possessions and cleared rubble from the devastated streets.

"There are a lot of families living here," said Bilal Othman, who explained that many people had sought shelter there from southern Beirut, a Hezbollah stronghold, which has been pummelled by Israeli raids in recent weeks.

"Do they want to tell us there is no safe place left in this country?" he said.

The Israeli strikes, which killed 22 people and injured more than a hundred, apparently targeted Hezbollah's security chief Wafiq Safam, a source close to Hezbollah told AFP.

Safa was close to Hezbollah's late leader Hassan Nasrallah, who was killed in an Israeli strike on south Beirut last month.

The worst-affected areas in the war are home to majority Shiite Muslims, where Hezbollah built its support base.

But Christian villagers near the border have also been trapped in the cross-fire.

"When Israel bombards, it flies over our heads. And when Hezbollah fires back, it also whizzes by above," Christian Joseph Jarjour told AFP by phone from the border village of Rmeish.

"We're peaceful, we don't have any weapons. We've never liked war," he said

- Children in Gaza -

Hezbollah began firing on Israel in support of its Palestinian ally Hamas, following the October 7, 2023 attack which resulted in the deaths of 1,206 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.

Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas and bring back the hostages seized by militants on October 7.

Its military campaign has wrought devastation on the territory and, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory, killed 42,126 people, a majority civilians.

On Friday, the co-head of a Japanese atomic bomb survivor group which was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize said the situation for children in Gaza reminded him of the plight of survivors after World War II.

"It's like in Japan 80 years ago," Toshiyuki Mimaki told a news conference in Tokyo.