Netanyahu denies IDF deliberately attacking UN peacekeepers
After several members of the U.N. Interim Force in Lebanon were injured in airstrikes, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denied that the Israel Defense Forces was intentionally attacking the peacekeepers.
"The charge that Israel deliberately attacked UNIFIL personnel is completely false. It's exactly the opposite," Netanyahu said in a statement. "Israel repeatedly asked UNIFIL to get out of harm's way. It repeatedly asked them to temporarily leave the combat zone, which is right next to Israel’s border with Lebanon."
Netanyahu said he regrets "any harm done to UNIFIL personnel" and claimed the IDF was "doing its utmost to prevent such incidents."
"But the best way to assure the safety of UNIFIL personnel is for UNIFIL to heed Israel's request and to temporarily get out of harm's way," he said.