HAMILTON, Canada

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres denounced on Wednesday an Israeli attack near a United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) contingent.

"The Secretary-General expresses serious concern about the incident that took place on 2 September in which Israel Defense Forces drones dropped grenades in the vicinity of UNIFIL peacekeepers who were carrying out mandated tasks in support of the implementation of Security Council resolution 1701," his spokesperson Stephane Dujarric told a news conference.

Describing it as "one of the most serious attacks on UNIFIL," Dujarric said "one grenade impacted within 20 meters and three within approximately 100 meters of UN personnel and vehicles. The drones were observed returning south of the Blue Line."

"Thankfully, no one was injured," he added.

Guterres, he said, "stresses that any acts that endanger the lives of the peacekeepers are completely unacceptable," demanding that all sides "uphold their responsibilities to ensure the safety and security of the peacekeepers and the inviolability of UN installations."

The incident came just days after the UN Security Council unanimously renewed UNIFIL's mandate for one last time on Aug. 28.

UNIFIL has operated in southern Lebanon since 1978 and was significantly reinforced under UN Security Council Resolution 1701 after the 2006 war between Israel and the Lebanese resistance group, Hezbollah.

Cross-border warfare between Hezbollah and Israeli forces began in October 2023, after Hamas attacks in Israel. It escalated into a full-scale war by September 2024, killing more than 4,000 people and injuring 17,000.

A ceasefire was reached in November, but Israel has conducted near-daily attacks in southern Lebanon since then, claiming to target Hezbollah activities.

Israel was supposed to fully withdraw from southern Lebanon earlier this year, but it still maintains a military presence at five border outposts.