UN peacekeeper killed, two wounded in Lebanon mortar attack

A United Nations peacekeeper was killed and two others were wounded when mortar shells struck their position in southern Lebanon late Wednesday night. The incident occurred near Marjayoun in southeastern Lebanon, according to the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).

The deceased peacekeeper was identified as Sergeant Milovan Jovanovic, a 36-year-old Serbian national serving with the UN mission. He succumbed to his wounds at a hospital in Beirut after being evacuated from the base by helicopter. Two other peacekeepers, from El Salvador and Spain, were injured and are receiving treatment at a medical facility within the UNIFIL base. This marks the seventh UNIFIL peacekeeper killed in Lebanon since fighting escalated in March.

UNIFIL has launched an investigation into the attack. In a statement, the mission condemned the incident, calling deliberate attacks on peacekeepers grave violations of international humanitarian law and Security Council Resolution 1701, and stated such acts may amount to war crimes. The force reported detecting an increasingly high number of trajectories and impacts in South Lebanon and called for the violence to end.