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Lebanon 'bomb' kills UN soldiers | |
(40 minutes later) | |
At least four Spanish soldiers serving with the UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon (Unifil) have been killed by an explosion in the south of the country. | |
The remote-controlled blast occurred at Khiyam near the border with Israel, Lebanese security sources said. | |
No-one has said they were behind the attack. Radical groups in Lebanon have threatened to attack peacekeepers. | |
For the last five weeks, the Lebanese army has been battling militants from the Fatah al-Islam group. | |
Authorities have said that Fatah al-Islam militants who have been arrested and interrogated have confessed there was a plan to attack the UN, says the BBC's Kim Ghattas in Beirut. | |
The militants are said to be inspired by al-Qaeda. | |
Multinational force | Multinational force |
Sunday's explosion took place near the southern town of Khiyam in the area of operation of UN peacekeepers. | Sunday's explosion took place near the southern town of Khiyam in the area of operation of UN peacekeepers. |
A convoy of armoured UN vehicles from a Spanish battalion was hit by the blast. | A convoy of armoured UN vehicles from a Spanish battalion was hit by the blast. |
It was initially unclear if the soldiers were targeted or hit unexploded ordinance left over from last summer's war. | |
The Unifil peacekeeping force, which has been deployed in Lebanon since 1978, was beefed up last summer after the end of hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel. | The Unifil peacekeeping force, which has been deployed in Lebanon since 1978, was beefed up last summer after the end of hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel. |
There are now around 13,000 UN peacekeepers deployed in the area, including French, Spanish and Indian soldiers. |