Four Italian UN peacekeepers injured by rocket fire in Lebanon

The UN peacekeeping agency in southern Lebanon has said four of its soldiers have been injured in a rocket attack on one of its bases.

The Italian soldiers were taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries after the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (Unifil) base in Shama, south-west Lebanon, was struck by two 122mm rockets, the agency said in a statement.

Unifil said the rockets were likely launched by Hezbollah or affiliates of the armed group.

Hezbollah has not commented on Unifil's statement, but the group said it fired a salvo of rockets at Israeli forces to the west of Shama earlier on Friday.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni expressed "profound indignation" over the news and said such attacks were "unacceptable".

The latest attack is the third to hit Unifil's base in Shama in a week. On Tuesday, Unifil said the base was damaged by rocket fire likely from "non-state actors".

It said Friday's attack hit a bunker and a logistics area. One of the affected structures caught fire but was quickly extinguished, the agency said.

Unifil has accused the Israel Defence Forces (IDF), and in some cases Hezbollah and its affiliates, of a growing number of attacks on peacekeeping forces since Israel began a ground incursion into southern Lebanon on 30 September targeting Hezbollah.

Hezbollah and Israel have traded near daily cross-border fire since October 2023, when Hamas fighters attacked communities in southern Israel.

Israel argues that Unifil has failed to prevent Hezbollah militants from operating near the Israeli border - among the reasons for a UN presence there - and has urged Unifil forces to leave the area for their own safety.

It also says that Hezbollah deliberately operates from sites located near Unifil positions.

Unifil has refused to withdraw from its positions, and has repeatedly urged all sides to cease both direct and indirect attacks on its bases, which it has said are a "flagrant violation" of international law.