The UN Security Council will be holding emergency meeting today, 31st of March, 2026 after the deaths of three peacekeepers in southern Lebanon within a 24-hour period.
The first fatality occurred on Sunday, when an Indonesian peacekeeper was killed after a projectile exploded near a UNIFIL position. Two more Indonesian peacekeepers were then killed on Monday when an explosion of unknown origin destroyed their vehicle near the southern Lebanese village of Bani Hayyan, with a third peacekeeper severely injured and a fourth also wounded. UNIFIL spokesperson Kandice Ardiel confirmed the two incidents were being investigated separately.
France requested the emergency Security Council session, with Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot condemning the attacks on UNIFIL positions as “unacceptable and unjustifiable” and calling for a thorough investigation.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres expressed his deepest condolences to the families of the deceased and urged all parties to de-escalate immediately and fully comply with their obligations under Security Council resolutions.
UN peacekeeping chief Jean-Pierre Lacroix told reporters that all three peacekeepers killed were Indonesian nationals, and that “peacekeepers must never be a target.”
Israel’s military announced it had launched an investigation into the incidents, stating it was reviewing whether the deaths resulted from Hezbollah or Israeli Defense Forces activity, noting the events took place in an active combat zone.
The deaths bring the total number of UN peacekeepers killed as a result of malicious acts since UNIFIL’s establishment in March 1978 to 97, and the overall death toll to over 330 the highest figure among all UN peacekeeping operations.
UNIFIL reiterated that deliberate attacks on peacekeepers constitute grave violations of international humanitarian law and may amount to war crimes under UN Security Council Resolution 1701.
