UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has expressed "deep appreciation" for India and other countries contributing troops to the peacekeeping operation in Lebanon where they face dangers from a growing conflict between Israel and Hezbollah.
UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) peacekeepers "remain in position, and the UN flag continues to fly despite Israel's request to relocate", he said on Wednesday at an emergency meeting of the Security Council on the Middle East situation.
"I reiterate our deep appreciation to the military and civilian members of our UN peacekeeping force – UNIFIL – and to troop-contributing countries," he said.
Nearly 900 Indian troops are with UNIFIL which is deployed along the Blue Line separating Israel and Lebanon.
They are caught between the Israeli military, which has moved into Lebanese territory, and Hezbollah, an Iran-affiliated militia that overran Southern Lebanon and controls vast swathes of territory from which it attacks Israel.
Guterres' Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said at his daily briefing that according to UNIFIL officials on the ground, "exchanges of fire continue and shelling is even more intense".
"They are constantly adjusting their operational posture to ensure their own safety, while at the same time implementing their mandate," he said.
He said that the Israeli military had asked UNIFIL to leave several positions near the Blue Line "saying it was in the interest of the peacekeepers' safety and security". But a "decision was made, both, I would say, operationally and politically, to stay. We will continue to stay, while at the same time assessing our posture and the security of peacekeepers, I would say, on an hourly basis", he added.
UNIFIL continues to be "a force of deterrence and they also provide a critical, I would say, communications framework where – as you know our UNIFIL commander speaks both to the Lebanese Armed Forces and to the Israeli Defence Forces – obviously, they’re also reporting on what is going on", Dujarric said.
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