On the Blue Line, in that UN-led buffer between Lebanon and Israel, life is now day by day. With the escalation of the Middle Eastern crisis that continues to reach increasingly worrying levels, the military in the Unifil bases are forced to take refuge in bunkers more and more often . The sky continues to be furrowed by the bombs that Lebanon and Israel now launch at each other on a daily basis, in a war that risks making events in the entire region definitively precipitate.
"The situation is still very worrying but the mission remains active," explains the spokesman for the Blue Helmets mission, Andrea Tenenti , sending a rather clear message to Tel Aviv. "The attacks on civilians - he recalls - are a violation of international humanitarian law."
There, in the strip of land wanted by the United Nations almost 25 years ago, a contingent of over 1,200 soldiers led by Army General Stefano Messina and composed mostly of the Sassari Brigade that took the place of the Alpine troops of the Taurinense last August, also operates . A significant commitment in the western sector of operations, in support of the over 10,000 Unifil soldiers who, for months now, have been on maximum alert. First for the raids by Iran and Israel and, now, for those that see the government of Tel Aviv on one side and Hezbollah on the other.
"In recent weeks there has been an intensification of clashes between the warring factions," Messina explained. "We are in the bases where there are adequate security measures for the current scenario. There are various scenarios, up to the maximum protection that requires everyone to go into bunkers to take cover with bulletproof vests and helmets." For the general, the recent explosions of pagers and walkie-talkies in Lebanon have hit Hezbollah, which however, he highlighted, "is still capable of carrying out unprecedented activities as we are seeing these days."
Almost a year after the Hamas massacre of October 7, the war - as expected - is starting to spread, ending up putting the UN mission on alert as well.
"The bombings - emphasizes the Unifil spokesperson Tenenti - are continuing throughout southern Lebanon and other areas. There are no injuries among our blue helmets. The commander and head of mission, General Lázaro, continues to maintain an open channel of communication with the parties to lower tensions and seek solutions that can stop these hostilities that could turn into a regional conflict that no one wants and that would have no winners". A consideration that reflects the thinking of a large part of the international community.
No more than a month ago, the Minister of Defense, Guido Crosetto, had underlined the risk that Italian soldiers could be "accidentally involved in clashes between the parties". This is why he had asked the United Nations for guarantees to protect the actions of the soldiers engaged in Lebanon. In the same speech to the Chamber, the minister had also criticized the actions of Unifil, accusing the mission of not having achieved its objectives. Today the crisis shows no signs of abating and the soldiers continue to take shelter in bunkers while continuing to look for channels and connections that can in some way reduce the consequences of an escalation that now seems inevitable.
(Online Union)