Pakistan, UN chief, EU assail peacekeepers' killings in Lebanon

Pakistan, the European Union and the United Nations chief on Tuesday strongly condemned fatal attacks on UN peacekeepers in Lebanon by Israel over the weekend. Three United Nations peacekeepers from Indonesia were killed in two separate incidents in southern Lebanon after a bloody weekend in which Lebanese journalists and medics ​were killed in Israeli strikes. UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres strongly condemned the killings. “My deepest condolences to the peacekeepers’ families, friends and colleagues and to Indonesia, and wishing a full and fast recovery to the injured peacekeeper,” he said on X. I strongly condemn Monday’s incident that led to the killing of two Indonesian @UNIFIL_ peacekeepers in South Lebanon. A third peacekeeper was severely injured & a fourth was also hurt. My deepest condolences to the peacekeepers’ families, friends & colleagues & to Indonesia,… — António Guterres (@antonioguterres) March 31, 2026 Permanent representative of Pakistan to the UN Asim Iftikhar Ahmad criticised the killings during an emergency meeting on the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) hosted by the UN Security Council. “UN personnel are impartial agents of peace; targeting them is a grave violation that undermines international humanitarian law. Failure to ensure the safety of UN personnel undermines the credibility of this council, of peacekeeping, international law, and the collective commitment of the international community to maintain peace and protect civilians,” Ahmad said during the meeting. He added that the attacks against peacekeepers were unacceptable and may constitute war crimes under international law. Attacks against peacekeepers are unacceptable and may constitute war crimes under international law. UN personnel are impartial agents of peace; targeting them is a grave violation that undermines international humanitarian law. Failure to ensure the safety of UN personnel… pic.twitter.com/eHHnCHpQbE — Permanent Mission of Pakistan to the UN (@PakistanUN_NY) March 31, 2026 He said accountability is essential and those responsible must be brought to justice. Ahmad called for a prompt, thorough, transparent and impartial investigation to establish the facts. "The safety and security of peacekeepers and UN premises must be fully ensured at all times, in full accordance with international law." Statement by Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, Permanent Representative of Pakistan to the UN, At the UN Security Council Emergency Meeting on UNIFIL (31 March 2026) ***** Mr. President, I thank USG Lacroix, USG Fletcher and ASG Khiari for their briefings that shed light on… pic.twitter.com/vEnEgkqeqj — Permanent Mission of Pakistan to the UN (@PakistanUN_NY) March 31, 2026 A group of European nations, as well as the EU, strongly condemned all recent attacks on UNIFIL, calling on Israel to avoid widening the conflict, including through a ground operation. In a joint statement, foreign ministers of Belgium, Croatia, France, Greece, Italy, Malta, the Netherlands, Portugal, the United Kingdom, the Greek Cypriot administration and the EU foreign policy chief reaffirmed that Lebanon's territorial integrity must be respected. "We call on all parties to immediately de-escalate and to revert to the cessation of hostilities agreement and UN Security Council resolution 1701 (2006)," said the statement. It also called for the protection of the civilian population, humanitarian personnel, peacekeepers, and civilian infrastructure, including airports, ports and bridges across the country, in line with international humanitarian law. "We reaffirm our concern regarding the forced displacement of over 1 million people in Lebanon," said the statement. The foreign ministers also called on Israel to avoid a further widening of the conflict, including through a ground operation on Lebanese territory. It added: "We strongly condemn all recent attacks on UNIFIL contingents, which provoked unacceptable casualties among peacekeepers in recent days." Israel has pounded Lebanon with airstrikes and launched a ground offensive in southern Lebanon since a cross-border attack by Hezbollah on March 2. Lebanese authorities said at least 1,247 people have since been killed and 3,690 injured in Israeli attacks. Two attacks in 24 hours Two peacekeepers were killed on Monday after an explosion from an unknown origin destroyed their vehicle near Bani Hayyan in south Lebanon, UNIFIL said in a statement. Two other soldiers were wounded in the blast. Another Indonesian soldier was killed overnight on Sunday into Monday when a projectile exploded near one of the group's positions close to the southern Lebanese village of Adchit al-Qusayr. Another peacekeeper was critically injured at the time. Read More: Two UN peacekeepers killed in Lebanon explosion The death on Sunday was the first among the UN's peacekeeping force in the new war between Israel and Lebanese armed group Hezbollah, which erupted on ​March 2. "These are two separate incidents, and we are investigating them as two separate incidents," said UNIFIL's spokesperson Kandice Ardiel. In response to the first death, Indonesia's foreign ministry said ​on Monday the deceased peacekeeper was one of its citizens and that three others were injured by "indirect artillery fire". Indonesia condemned "in the strongest terms" the ⁠second attack, its foreign ministry said on Tuesday. "This cannot be treated as an isolated occurrence, but reflects a rapidly deteriorating security environment in southern Lebanon, where ongoing Israeli military operations have placed ​United Nations peacekeepers at grave risk," it said. In a post on X on Tuesday, the country's Foreign Minister Sugiono called for an emergency UNSC meeting and "for a swift, thorough, and transparent ​investigation" into the "heinous attack" after speaking with Guterres. The Government of the Republic of Indonesia condemns in the strongest terms the second consecutive incident near Bani Haiyyan, southern Lebanon, on 30 March 2026 affecting Indonesian peacekeepers serving under UNIFIL, resulting in the loss of two more lives and injuries to two… — MoFA Indonesia (@Kemlu_RI) March 31, 2026 Israel's military said early on Tuesday it was aware of the reports regarding the two incidents and they were being reviewed thoroughly to determine whether they resulted from Hezbollah or the military's activity.