Last update - 00:00 16/07/2007
Bomb hits UN peacekeeping vehicle in southern Lebanon
By News Agencies
A bomb hit a United Nations peacekeeping force patrol on a coastal road in southern Lebanon on Monday, a Lebanese security official said, the second such attack targeting the force in less than a month.
The bomb struck the convoy as it was driving through the village of Qassimiyeh near the southern port city of Tyre, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.
Lebanese security forces said that some damage was caused to the vehicle, but that there were no casualties. A UN spokesman confirmed that no one was hurt.
Prime Minister of Lebanon Fouad Siniora called the attack a cowardly act, saying it will not stop the Lebanese government from pursuing the criminals and bringing them to justice.
In the first attack targeting the force, known as the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), six peacekeepers belonging to the Spanish contingent were killed June 24 when a bomb struck their armored personnel carrier in southern Lebanon.
It was the first deadly attack on the 13,000-strong United Nations force since last year's Israel-Hezbollah war.
UNIFIL Commander Gen. Claudio Graziano has said he does not know who was behind the car bombing on the Spanish troops, but he was "sure the attackers aimed to undermine peace in Lebanon and the region."
There have been warnings that the peacekeepers could come under terror attacks, particularly from Al-Qaida and its sympathizers. Media reports last month said interrogations by Lebanese authorities with captured militants revealed plots to attack the force.
Those warnings became more serious after Fatah al-Islam, an Al-Qaida-inspired militant group, began fighting Lebanese troops in a northern Lebanon Palestinian refugee camp in May. The militants have threatened to take their battle outside northern Lebanon and other militant groups have issued Internet statements supporting Fatah al-Islam.