U.N. Peacekeepers Wounded in Southern Lebanon Attack

[vminfla]

A bomb exploded near a United Nations convoy helping patrol southern Lebanon on Friday, wounding five peacekeepers in the third attack on the contingent this year, a United Nations spokesman and security officials said. .

No one was killed in the attack, but it underlined a growing sense of unease in Lebanon, as the country braces for repercussions from the nine-month uprising in neighboring Syria. Lebanon is divided between factions opposed and allied to the Syrian government, and many have worried that a proxy war of sorts could be fought here.

The attack in Lebanon occurred at 9:30 a.m., when the bomb exploded on the southern outskirts of the port of Tyre, the officials said. The United Nations declined to identify the nationality of the peacekeepers but officials here said they were French.

The bombing was the first this year against the United Nations force in the region it actually patrols, an area that straddles the Lebanese-Israeli border. In May, six Italian peacekeepers were wounded by a roadside bomb in Sidon, another port city north of Tyre. In July, six French soldiers were wounded in an attack in the same region.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/10/world/middleeast/un-peacekeepers-wounded-in-southern-lebanon-attack.html?_r=2

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Damn. Hard to perpetuate the myth of arab victimhood if you go around blowing up the people you are selling the myth to.

[holdencaufield]

1. Normally, you'd be right

"Damn. Hard to perpetuate the myth of arab victimhood if you go around blowing up the people you are selling the myth to."

But, I guarantee you that someone will blame this on Israel or some alleged occupation of Lebanon.

[vminfla]

2. I am actually surprised about it too

By now, there would be some sort of naysayer that would allege that this was some sort of black flag op by Mossad. Just like all the black flag ops that Israel had in Iran were a better explanation than shoddy Iranian quality control when it comes to their missile stockpiles.

[vminfla]

3. Analysts suspect UNIFIL attack linked to pressure on Syria

Friday’s bomb attack that targeted a UNIFIL patrol in south Lebanon, wounding five French peacekeepers, is intended to send “a political message” to Western countries, mainly France, which are stepping up pressure on Syria to halt its violent crackdown on protesters demanding the ouster of President Bashar Assad, political analysts said Friday.

Lebanon’s top leaders and political parties, including Hezbollah, have condemned the bombing, the third this year targeting patrols of the U.N. Interim Force in Lebanon. President Michel Sleiman called on French peacekeeping forces to stay in Lebanon and vowed to find those responsible for the attack.

“This terrorist attack is aimed at pressuring these troops to withdraw and pave the way for the return of terrorist activities,” Sleiman told a joint news conference with his Armenian counterpart Serzh Sarkseyan in the Armenian capital Yerevan.

“Definitely, the attack is a political message linked to the situation in Syria. The attack is enough to send a political message but not enough to change the rules of engagement with UNIFIL in the south,” Hanna, a strategic analyst, told The Daily Star.


Read more: http://www.dailystar.com.lb/Article.aspx?id=156501#ixzz1gAKBDKCZ

[vminfla]

4. Security Council, U.S. condemn attack on UNIFIL

The U.N. Security Council has condemned Friday’s attack on French peacekeepers in south Lebanon and called for greater cooperation between the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) and the Lebanese Army.

In a statement late Friday, the 15-nation Security Council “called for enhanced cooperation between the Lebanese Army and UNIFIL and for the rapid finalization of this investigation " and condemned all threats against security in Lebanon.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon described the attack on UNIFIL as deeply disturbing and called for the perpetrators to be brought to justice.

"He expects that the perpetrators will be swiftly identified and brought to justice," said UN spokesman Martin Nesirky. Ban called the attack "deeply disturbing" and said the safety of peacekeepers was of "paramount importance".


Read more: http://www.dailystar.com.lb/Article.aspx?id=156522#ixzz1gBZXTqmM

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I have my doubts that justice will ever be served and the perpetrators will never be identified. Given the fact that those responsible for Harari's assassination still run around free. This non-resolution statement is about as far as the UN will probably go with this matter. This is sad, but not without precedent.