Russia demands Israel refrain from attacking UN peacekeepers in Lebanon after shooting incident

MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia’s Foreign Ministry said on Friday it was “outraged” by what it said was an Israeli military attack on U.N. peacekeepers in Lebanon and demanded that Israel refrain from any “hostile actions” against them.

A U.N. source said that Israeli forces had fired at an observation post belonging to the UNIFIL peacekeeping force at its main base at Naqoura in southern Lebanon on Friday, wounding two people.

Israeli forces had also breached the perimeter of another UNIFIL position that they had fired at on Thursday, the source said.

“Moscow is outraged by the actions of the Israeli military,” Russia’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

“The Russian side demands that it refrain from any hostile actions against the UNIFIL peacekeepers carrying out their mission in Lebanon in accordance with the existing mandate of the United Nations Security Council, and expresses its support and wishes the wounded a speedy recovery,” it said.

(Reporting by Reuters; Editing by Andrew Osborn)