Late on Wednesday, a United Nations mission in Lebanon (UNIFIL) convoy was attacked with firearms, killing an Irish Blue Helmet and injuring three others. The two UNIFIL armored vehicles were en route to the Beirut airport when they were harassed in the southern town of Aqibiya, near Saida.
The Aqibiya secondary road would be outside the jurisdiction of UNIFIL, which could be at the origin of the attack. Hizbullah, the usual suspect in his stronghold in southern Lebanon, has offered his condolences and denied his involvement in what he has described as an "accident."
The deceased soldier, Seán Rooney, was just 23 years old. His partner Shane Kearney, 22, had to undergo surgery and is in serious condition, while the other two wounded soldiers are out of danger.
According to witnesses, a crowd blocked the passage of the two armored vehicles, separating them. One of them responded by accelerating and, already under the bullets, lost control, overturning after crashing into the metal shutter of a store. It is not clear if there was an exchange of fire and it is not clear if there are any civilians injured.
UNIFIL's mandate was renewed for one year on August 31, at the UN, with a change in its statutes. His troops, which until now had to go hand in hand with the Lebanese army, have carte blanche in their movements, something that was described as a "sovereignty violation" by the leader of Hizbullah, Hasan Nasrallah.
It so happens that the current UNIFIL commander is a Spanish general, Aroldo Lázaro, while Spain is the second European country that contributes the most troops, after France and Italy. The origin of UNIFIL dates back to 1978, as a response to Israel's withdrawal from Lebanon (a country that the Hebrew army would invade again, before definitively withdrawing in 2000, due to harassment by Hezbollah, a Shiite organization and militia with which the Tsahal would meet again in 2006).
If UNIFIL's mission seems endless, neither is the financial, economic and political crisis in Lebanon. This Thursday the tenth attempt to appoint a president, a vacant position since October 31, failed. The president of the Assembly, the incombustible Nabih Berry, has already communicated to his lordships that there will be no new votes in the remainder of the year.
