More On UN Peacekeepers
Ha'aretz is reporting that Israel has committed itself to a full investigation into the deaths of four UN peacekeepers. They have also registered official protests to Kofi Annan's irresponsible remarks.
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert told United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan on Wednesday that he has instructed the military to carry out a thorough investigation into an Israel Air Force strike on a UN base in southern Lebanon, in which four peacekeepers were killed.
He told Annan that the results would be shared with him.
Israel said Wednesday that it regrets the "tragic" deaths of the observers and will thoroughly investigate the circumstances that led to their deaths.
"Israel sincerely regrets the tragic deaths of the UN personnel in south Lebanon," said Foreign Ministry spokesman Mark Regev.
Annan had earlier called for an inquiry into what he called Israel's "apparently deliberate targeting" of the UN observer force.
Olmert expressed dismay over Annan's comments. "It's inconceivable for the UN to define an error as an apparently deliberate action," the statement said.
Dan Ayalon, Israel's Ambassador to Washington, demanded that Annan apologize for the remarks, which he called "baseless."
Olmert said he had spoken to Annan to express "deep sorrow" over the deaths.
The victims included observers from Austria, Canada, China and Finland, UN and Lebanese military officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to release the information to the media.
The four observers were killed after a bomb directly struck the building and shelter of an Indian patrol base from an observer force in the town of Khiyam near the eastern end of the border with Israel, said Milos Struger, spokesman for the UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon, UNIFIL.
"There are casualties among the observers. UNIFIL immediately dispatched a rescue and medical team and they're currently on the location but unable to clear the rubble," Struger said.
At UN headquarters in New York, Annan said he was "trying to get the details" of the attack.
Annan said there were 14 other incidents of Israeli gunfire directed at the targeted area Tuesday afternoon. "The firing continued even during the rescue operation," he said.
Israel's UN Ambassador Dan Gillerman expressed his "deep regret" for the deaths and denied Israel hit the post intentionally.
Gillerman said he was "shocked and deeply distressed by the hasty statement of the secretary-general, insinuating that Israel has deliberately targeted the UN post," calling the assertions "premature and erroneous."
He said Olmert's assurances to the secretary-general are "a clear indication" of Israel's commitment to ensure the safety and security of UN personnel.
Gillerman said "Israel is carrying out a thorough inquiry into this tragic incident and will inform the UN of its results as soon as possible."
The UN Security Council was expected to receive a briefing on the bombing on Wednesday.
As I said earlier, Annan's remarks are completely out of line unless he has irrefutable proof in hand. Which he frankly cannot have until an investigation is completed.
UPDATE: The Jerusalem Post reports that a UN source is alleging that the Israelis used a precision guided missile to hit the bunker.
UN military personnel on the ground along the Israel-Lebanon border say the munitions that hit the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO) position early Wednesday were precision-guided, a UN source told The Jerusalem Post on Thursday.
Furthermore, the source added, the strike came after repeated requests by UNTSO commanders to the IDF not to strike that specific position.
The IDF spokesman told The Jerusalem Post that the army was looking into the allegations and that it deeply regretted the "tragic death" of the UN personnel.UNTSO was the first peacekeeping mission established by the UN.
"Very senior and experienced military personnel report that the UN position was hit by a precision-guided missile. This attack comes at a time when the international community is in discussions with countries about donating troops to form a new force [to send to south Lebanon]. This attack plays very badly into that. At the same time as donor countries have to justify to their electorate the idea of sending their sons to this region to put their lives on the line, Israel blows up a UN observation position and kills four of its personnel," the source said, adding that Israel was "shooting itself in the foot, and sending a very bad signal" to the international community.
"At a time when [United Nations humanitarian chief Jan] Egeland is trying to establish a humanitarian aid corridor to Lebanon, the situation on the ground could turn catastrophic if soldiers on the ground are not clearly instructed not to do things like this. The UN is delighted that the Israeli government has launched an investigation into this incident and awaits the findings of the probe," the source said.
This is a situation where it will be necessary to wait for investigations to be completed before rushing to judgement.
This is a situation where it will be necessary to wait for investigations to be completed before rushing to judgement.
UPDATE: See also The Real Ugly American and Flopping Aces.
Other Links to this Post
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Liberty and Justice — Wednesday, 26 July , 2006 @ 9:48 am
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PartisanTimes.com — Wednesday, 26 July , 2006 @ 11:37 am
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Flopping Aces » Blog Archive » Who’s Fault Is It Again Kofi? — Wednesday, 26 July , 2006 @ 3:09 pm
By crosspatch, Wednesday, 26 July , 2006 @ 11:38 am
If a soldier accidently paints the wrong target with a laser target designator, a precision weapon follows that designation right to the target. If there are Hezbollah nearby, it could be an easy mistake to make.
Particularly if the UN outpost looks like this.
By Blackhawk, Wednesday, 26 July , 2006 @ 1:14 pm
Ditto what crosspatch said. Humans make most of the targeting decisions for these types of weapons, no matter what type of guidance system they have.
By Ben, Wednesday, 26 July , 2006 @ 1:37 pm
The one that gets you was always, always precision guided.