THE Philippines joined 40 other nations in condemning the alleged attack of Israel on a United Nations peacekeeping mission in Lebanon.
“We urge all UN member states to uphold their obligations under international law and ensure peacekeepers can carry out their critical work. Violations of peacekeeping mandates undermine the rules-based international order and destabilize regions where peace efforts are most needed,” the Department of Foreign Affairs said in a statement dated October 17.
“We reaffirm our commitment to multilateral cooperation to promote international peace and security,” it added.
A soldier of the UN peacekeeping mission, United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), keeps watch from Marjayoun area opposite Lebanese Khiyam town and Israeli Metula settlement, near the Lebanon-Israel border in southern Lebanon, 27 August 2024. Hezbollah announced in a statement on 25 August that the group launched an aerial operation with numerous drones targeting Israeli territory as the ‘phase one’ of a retaliatory attack for the killing of senior Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr on 30 July in Beirut. The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) said some 100 fighter jets struck and destroyed thousands of Hezbollah rocket launcher barrels, aimed for immediate fire toward northern and central Israel. EPA-EFE/STR
The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (Unifil) said that its facilities have been “repeatedly hit” and that Israeli forces had “deliberately” fired shots at the mission’s headquarters in the town of Naqoura.
Israeli forces requested Unifil to withdraw from certain positions, but there was a unanimous decision to remain in the area, Unifil spokesman Andrea Tenenti told Agence France-Presse on October 13.
Unifil was established in 1978 as an interim force to confirm Israel’s withdrawal from Lebanon and to help restore peace in the region.
Meanwhile, the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) announced on Friday the return of 76 overseas Filipino workers with their dependents from Lebanon, Kuwait and United Arab Emirates.
Two flights brought the repatriates home — Saudia Flight 862 via Riyadh and Kuwait Airways Flight 417 via Kuwait City — both arrived at Terminal 1 of Ninoy Aquino International Airport on Friday.
The repatriates were welcomed by representatives from OWWA and Department of Migrant Workers for financial and livelihood aid assessment.
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