Malta joins nine countries in blaming Hezbollah for Lebanon violence
As Israel intensifies its strikes, 10 European countries say 'responsibility lies with Hezbollah'
Malta has joined nine other countries in blaming Hezbollah for an uptick of violence in Lebanon.
Israel has intensified its attacks on Lebanon this week, striking targets in Beirut and the country’s south, where militant group Hezbollah has a strong presence. Israel's defence minister has also said the country intends to take over a part of southern Lebanon.
The Israeli strikes come in response to missiles fired at Israel by Hezbollah, to avenge Israel's killing of Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Lebanon's government has condemned Hezbollah for the attacks and moved to ban the group's military activities.
Violence in the country has, however, escalated in the past days when three peacekeepers forming part of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon were killed in two separate explosions.
A UN source told AFP that at least one of those blasts originated from an Israeli tank.
Israel has denied responsibility for the attacks on UNIFIL peacekeepers.
Malta has five soldiers serving in Lebanon as part of the UNIFIL mission, with the AFM deployed with Irish forces there. Maltese soldiers were not among those impacted by the strikes on UNIFIL forces.
In a joint statement issued through the EU's diplomatic service on Tuesday, foreign ministers of 10 states said the blame for the escalation of violence in Lebanon “lies with Hezbollah.
“We strongly condemn Hezbollah’s attacks in support of Iran against Israel, which must cease immediately. The priority is to avoid a further escalation of the regional conflict with Iran,” they said.
Foreign ministers said Lebanon was “suffering the dramatic consequences of a war that is not theirs.”
“We strongly condemn Hezbollah’s attacks in support of Iran against Israel, which must cease immediately. The priority is to avoid a further escalation of the regional conflict with Iran.
Apart from Malta, the joint statement was signed by ministers of nine EU member states - Belgium, Croatia, Cyprus, France, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands and Portugal - and the United Kingdom.
The other two neutral EU member states, Austria and Ireland, did not endorse the declaration.
EU ministers urged Israel to avoid a ground operation into Lebanon, saying Lebanon’s territorial integrity “must be respected.”
They backed the Lebanese government in its effort to strengthen its institutions and called for direct talks between Israel and Lebanon to end the conflict and called on Lebanon to adopt reforms in line with IMF requirements “with a view to enabling the Lebanese security forces to become the sole independent guarantors of Lebanon’s sovereignty in the long term.”
“We strongly condemn all recent attacks on UNIFIL contingents, which provoked unacceptable casualties among the peacekeepers in recent days. We urge all parties, under all circumstances, to ensure the safety and security of UNIFIL personnel and premises, in accordance with international law,” they said.