Foreign Minister on 3 Injured TNI Soldiers in Lebanon Attack: Still Under Investigation
Three United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) peacekeepers injured in the latest attack on a Hezbollah base in Lebanon on Friday (3/4) are members of the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI).
This has been confirmed by representatives from the United Nations (UN) communications office and the Indonesian government.
“Last night, I also received a report that three TNI soldiers were injured, and the cause is still being investigated by UNIFIL, just like the two previous incidents,” said Indonesian Foreign Minister Sugiono at Soekarno-Hatta Airport in Tangerang on Saturday (4/4) evening.
Previously, Siska Widyawati, the National Information Officer at the UN Information Centre (UNIC) in Indonesia, confirmed that the latest victims of the attack in southern Lebanon on Friday were TNI soldiers.
“Yes, that’s correct [the injured UNIFIL troops are Indonesian nationals],” Siska said when contacted by CNNIndonesia.com on Saturday morning.
Of the three reported victims, two sustained serious injuries.
The two seriously injured victims have been taken to a local hospital and are receiving medical treatment. They are now in stable condition.
UNIFIL spokesperson Kandice Ardiel stated that the incident occurred in the afternoon at one of the UN troops’ positions.
“This afternoon, an explosion at a UN [peacekeeping] position injured three soldiers, two of them with serious injuries,” Ardiel said in a statement on Friday evening.
Nevertheless, the exact cause of the explosion remains unknown at this time.
“We don’t yet know the source of the explosion,” Ardiel said.
This incident marks the third attack on UNIFIL troops amid escalating conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in southern Lebanon.
“UNIFIL reminds all relevant parties of their obligations to ensure the safety and security of peacekeeping forces, including by avoiding combat activities near them that could endanger them,” Ardiel said.
Condolences for the Three Fallen TNI Soldiers
Previously, three TNI soldiers with UNIFIL also died in two separate attacks in Lebanon within a 24-hour period.
Private First Class Farizal Rhomadhon, Captain Inf Zulmi Aditya Iskandar, and Sergeant Major Muhammad Nur Ichwan perished in the attacks.
In honour of the three soldiers who received posthumous promotions, Foreign Minister Sugiono expressed the government’s condolences today upon the arrival of their bodies in Indonesia for their final tribute.
Furthermore, Sugiono stated that Indonesia condemns the attacks on UN peacekeeping forces in southern Lebanon, not far from the Israeli border.
“We also demand a thorough investigation because this is a peacekeeping mission. Therefore, such things should not happen, but the reality is that they do,” he said.
In total, three TNI soldiers serving as peacekeepers died in two incidents in southern Lebanon within 24 hours.
In its statement, UNIFIL said that TNI soldier Private First Class Farizal Rhomadhon was killed by a projectile explosion near an Indonesian position in Adchit Al Qusayr village on Sunday (29/3).
Meanwhile, the two TNI soldiers who died on Monday (30/3) were due to an explosion from an unknown source. Captain Inf Zulmi Aditya Iskandar and Sergeant Major Muhammad Nur Ichwan perished in that incident.
The three deceased have been posthumously promoted to Major Inf. (Posthumous) Zulmi Aditya Iskandar, Staff Sergeant (Posthumous) Muhammad Nur Ichwan, and Second Lieutenant (Posthumous) Farizal Rhomadhon.