According to the Finnish Army, the Finnish peacekeepers are fine. There are about 200 of them in Lebanon.
Laura Kangas,
Veikko Eromäki
There are currently around 200 Finnish peacekeepers in Lebanon, located north of Israel, who operate in the area with Lebanese and French soldiers.
Lebanon’s UNIFIL peacekeeping mission under the UN says In the X message service, that the peacekeepers observed rocket attacks from southeast Lebanon towards the Israeli-occupied area of Kafr Couba in the morning. Israel responded to the attacks with artillery.
UNIFIL says that the peacekeeping forces are in contact with both sides and are working to keep the situation stable and avoid the situation from escalating.
According to UNIFIL, the personnel will remain in their positions and continue their work. Some of the personnel have moved to shelter to ensure safety.
Maavoimat tells In the X message servicethat the Finns serving in Lebanon are fine and will continue to carry out their mission.
Rockets fired from Lebanon into Israel
The Israeli army said on Sunday morning that mortars have been fired at Israel from Lebanon. Rockets have also been fired at Israel.
The Hezbollah organization operating in Lebanon has taken responsibility for the attacks. It is a political and military actor that is a long-standing opponent of Israel.
Hezbollah has relatively large armed forces at its disposal, considering that it is not a state actor.
On Sunday morning, Hezbollah launched rockets and grenades into the northern parts of Israel, to which Israel responded with artillery fire and a drone strike. Israeli tanks have moved on Sunday on the border with Lebanon.
A Lebanese security source tells the Reuters news agency that the Lebanese Armed Forces have also increased their forces in the border area.
Peacekeepers in Lebanon since the 70s
UNIFIL is the United Nations peacekeeping mission in Lebanon. It has been working to improve the security situation in the country since 1978.
Finnish peacekeepers have participated in the UNIFIL operation in Lebanon for five decades in 1982–2001, 2006–2007 and since 2012.
Among other things, the UNIFIL operation monitors the border area between Lebanon and Israel, supports the Lebanese armed forces, helps the country’s population and helps deliver humanitarian aid. The Finns participate in, among other things, patrolling and guarding and standby duties.