Posted on 07/25/2006 6:23:32 PM PDT by canuck_conservative
An Israeli bomb destroyed a UN observer post on the border in southern Lebanon on Tuesday, killing four peacekeepers, including a Canadian, a UN official said.
UN chief Kofi Annan said Israel appeared to have struck the site deliberately.
The dead included observers from Canada, Austria, China and Finland, a senior Lebanese military official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to release the information to the media.
Canada had eight personnel in the area as part of the UN Truce Supervision Organization.
One Canadian UN staffer was believed to be in the area struck by the bomb — a soldier with the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry who has reportedly been in the region for nine months.
The bomb made a direct hit on the building and shelter of the observer post in the town of Khiyam near the eastern end of the border with Israel, said Milos Struger, spokesman for the UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon known as UNIFIL. Canada is not a member of UNIFIL.
A UN official in New York City said four people were confirmed killed. He spoke on condition of anonymity because the information had not been formally released. Annan said two UN military observers were killed with two more feared dead. He refused to identify the peacekeepers until next of kin have been notified.
Spokesmen for Canada's UNTSO mission, known as Operation Jade, at National Defence headquarters in Ottawa were unavailable for comment.
Rescue workers were trying to clear the rubble but Israeli firing ``continued even during the rescue operation," Struger said.
As reports of the attack emerged, Annan rushed out of a hotel in Rome following a dinner with U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Saniora.
"I am shocked and deeply distressed by the apparently deliberate targeting by Israeli Defence Forces of a UN observer post in southern Lebanon," Annan said in a statement later.
Annan said in his statement the post had been there for a long time and was marked clearly, and was hit despite assurances from Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert that UN positions would not be attacked.
"I call on the government of Israel to conduct a full investigation into this very disturbing incident and demand that any further attack on UN positions and personnel must stop," Annan said in the statement.
U.S. Ambassador John Bolton said the UN Security Council was informed four officers were killed, but he had no other information.
"We're obviously very sorry about that," Bolton said. "We're attempting to get information where we can to confirm the nature of the incident."
Since Israel launched a massive military offensive against Lebanon and Hezbollah guerrillas July 12, an international civilian employee working with UNIFIL and his wife have been killed in the crossfire between Israeli forces and Hezbollah guerrillas in the southern Lebanese port city of Tyre.
Five UNIFIL soldiers and one military observer have also been wounded, Struger said.
Alan Baker, Israel's ambassador to Canada, said from Ottawa he was aware of an airstrike, but couldn't confirm reports that a Canadian was among the casualties.
I read somewhere that an Italian soldier who was in the UN detail was killed by Israeli bombing or shelling a few days ago. I hated to hear that, Italy has been one of the few European nations which has substantially helped us in Iraq.
Prayers for the observers and their families. I do not blame them for the faults of the UN.
Nobody in his right mind thinks Israel deliberately targeted the UN observation post. It would be interesting to know Kofi's reaction if hit by Hezbollah.
A little tweaking....it'd be interesting to know what Kofi would have said if the post had been hit by Hezbollah. And Canada, we're terribly sorry about the loss of one of your brave soldiers. We grieve with you.
They would try to do it indirectly, perhaps through Special Command. Why get *their* hands bloody?
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