UN peacekeepers fired on in south Lebanon as strikes reported

The United Nations peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon said one of its patrols was fired upon and returned fire, an incident carried by CNA and Al Jazeera, on a day when Lebanese state media reported Israeli strikes across the south.

The force, known as UNIFIL, said the patrol "was fired upon with about a dozen rounds" and shot back, according to CNA. Al Jazeera also reported that a UNIFIL patrol came under fire in southern Lebanon. CNA's account did not say who fired at the patrol, and gave no location beyond the south.

Anadolu Agency, citing Lebanon's official news agency, reported air strikes, explosions, artillery fire and drone activity in towns in southern Lebanon. The agency's report did not give a casualty toll or say which towns were hit.

More than 360,000 people are still displaced after months of war between Israel and Hezbollah, according to the United Nations, a figure France 24 reported in a segment on families living in makeshift housing along the border. The Israeli army says it is fighting the Iran-backed group; France 24 reported that it occupies 6 percent of Lebanese territory and that entire villages have been destroyed. Families interviewed by the channel said they feared they would never return home.

Anadolu Agency also reported that Lebanon's prime minister, Nawaf Salam, told the COP31 climate summit that environmental losses from Israeli attacks on Lebanon in 2023 and 2024 exceeded $512m, with further losses recorded in 2026. Salam called for environmental restoration to be central to reconstruction efforts.

Southern Lebanon has been the front line of repeated exchanges between Israel and Hezbollah, and UNIFIL patrols the border area under a mandate that has kept peacekeepers there through successive rounds of fighting.