Saudi Arabia condemns attack on UN peacekeeping mission in southern Lebanon

Saudi Arabia on Friday condemned the attack on a UN peacekeeping mission in southern Lebanon, the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.

An Irish soldier was shot and killed on a UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon and a second was in a critical condition after a “hostile” crowd surrounded their armored vehicle late on Wednesday.

The Kingdom’s foreign affairs ministry expressed its “strong condemnation and denunciation of the attack,” and called for an “immediate and transparent” investigation into the incident.

The ministry expressed the Kingdom’s absolute rejection of all forms of violence and affirmed the Kingdom’s support for UNIFIL.

It also extended its “sincere condolences to the government and people of Ireland, wishing the wounded a speedy recovery,” SPA added.

Southern Lebanon is a stronghold for Hezbollah, a powerful armed group and a heavyweight political party backed by Iran.

The party has denied a role in the violence, saying it was an “unintentional incident” between residents and the UN forces.

However, Ireland’s Defense Minister Simon Coveney told state broadcaster RTE that he did not accept Hezbollah’s assurances that it had no involvement.