Israel suspected of using white phosphorus on UN peacekeepers in Lebanon: Report

The Israeli military is suspected of forcibly entering a UN peacekeeping force's base in Lebanon and using white phosphorus in close enough range to injure 15 peacekeepers, The Financial Times reported on Tuesday, citing a confidential report from a country that provides peacekeepers to Lebanon.

The report details around a dozen attacks launched on UN troops in Lebanon, including damaging several facilities and injuring troops at border posts in south Lebanon.

The reported incident occurred on 13 October, when the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (Unifil) said two Israeli Merkava tanks broke through the gates of one of its bases. The tanks left after 45 minutes, following complaints from Unifil.

The Financial Times does not specify in its report where the incident took place, but on that same day, two tanks were reported to have hit the post of a Unifil base in Ramya, a town in southern Lebanon. Unifil said its peacekeepers were being treated for skin irritation and gastrointestinal reactions.

Within the next hour after the tanks left, several rounds were fired 100 metres north of the Unifil base, and the rounds emitted a "smoke of suspected white phosphorous" that ultimately injured 15 peacekeepers.

Read more: Israel suspected of using white phosphorus on UN peacekeepers in Lebanon: Report