The fighting between Israel and Hezbollah has come close to the UN peacekeeping force Unifil. A German warship intercepts an incoming combat drone off the coast of Lebanon.
The corvette “Ludwigshafen am Rhein”, which is operating on a UN mission off the coast of Lebanon, fended off an incoming combat drone amid growing tensions. During the crash, “an explosive charge was deployed,” said a spokesman for the Bundeswehr’s operational command.
Members of the Bundestag were informed on Thursday that parts of the drone had fallen into the “nearby area” of the ship. There were no injuries or damage on board the ship, which is part of the UN peacekeeping force Unifil.
According to information from dpa, the incident occurred in the Mediterranean about 30 kilometers northwest of the Lebanese port city of Nakura, where the Unifil headquarters is also located. It was the first such incident involving the corvette in recent memory.
The unmanned missile was brought down in a controlled manner around 7 a.m. using a defense system, a spokesman for the Bundeswehr’s operational command told the German Press Agency in Berlin upon request. It was a fixed-wing drone – meaning it was designed with wings, not rotors. Parts of the drone have been recovered and should be examined. However, it initially remained unclear which side in the conflict the weapon belonged to.
Blue helmets have recently been shot at several times
Unifil’s task is to monitor compliance with the ceasefire following the 2006 Lebanon War. The UN force is supporting the Lebanese government in securing its maritime borders and preventing weapons smuggling by sea.
The blue helmet soldiers had been shot at several times on land in the past few days. You have sometimes named Israeli troops as the perpetrators, and sometimes you have spoken of an unclear situation in the fighting between Israeli soldiers and Hezbollah.
The Bundeswehr is currently providing the corvette with around 60 crew members and 40 soldiers in the UN headquarters camp in Nakura for the Unifil mission’s maritime force.
Bundeswehr assumes greater danger
Because of multiple attacks on UN peacekeeping posts in southern Lebanon, the Bundeswehr is assuming greater danger for its men and women in the peacekeeping force. “According to the local assessment, there is an increased risk situation for the forces on site, which will be reduced as best as possible through appropriate protective measures by the troops,” a spokesman for the operational command explained.
The German Unifil mission primarily includes command of the multinational maritime units off the coast of Lebanon. They are guided from Nakura. In addition to the main mission of maritime surveillance, the units support the UN mission by transporting personnel and materials over sea.
The exact origin of the drone remains unconfirmed in Germany
The Israeli embassy in Germany publicly thanked the German corvette “Ludwigshafen am Rhein”, which was deployed on UN mission, after the German corvette “Ludwigshafen am Rhein” was defended against a drone in the Mediterranean. The representative initially wrote on X that it was a Hezbollah drone. The tweet could no longer be accessed later. The Israeli government has recently been sharply criticized internationally on several occasions for attacks on Unifil posts in southern Lebanon.
Source: Stern
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