“Two UNIFIL peacekeepers were tragically killed in south Lebanon today when an explosion of unknown origin destroyed their vehicle near Bani Hayyan. A third peacekeeper was severely injured, and a fourth was also hurt,” the force said in a statement, adding that it had launched an investigation.

The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) patrols the area along the country’s southern border, where Israel has been conducting strikes to create what it describes as a “buffer zone” inside Lebanese territory—effectively a de facto occupation.

On Sunday, an Indonesian soldier serving with UNIFIL was killed when a projectile exploded near a UN position close to the border, while three others were wounded.

Lebanese state media also reported a series of Israeli airstrikes in southern Lebanon from Sunday into Monday. The Lebanese army said one of its soldiers was killed and others were wounded in an attack on a checkpoint in the Tyre region.

A military source told AFP that the strike was the first direct targeting of a Lebanese army checkpoint since Israel's latest war on Lebanon began on 2 March.

Earlier, the army command announced the deaths of eight Lebanese soldiers in southern and eastern Lebanon since the war began, though they were not on duty at the time.

*This story was edited by Ahram Online.

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