Saudi Arabia backs Lebanon to ‘firmly’ address attack on UN peacekeeping force convoy

Saudi Arabia vowed full support on Sunday for Lebanon’s measures to “firmly” address a recent attack on a convoy of the UN peacekeeping mission (UNIFIL) in the capital Beirut, Anadolu reports.

“Saudi Arabia fully supports the measures taken by the Lebanese Republic to counter attempts to destabilize the security of Lebanese citizens and to deal firmly with the attack on the UN peacekeeping force (UNIFIL),” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The kingdom reaffirmed its “trust in decisions of President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, as well as the Lebanese army’s efforts to ensure national security and stability.”

On Saturday, Lebanese Interior Minister Ahmad al-Hajjar announced the arrest of 25 individuals following an attack on a convoy carrying the UNIFIL deputy commander near Beirut airport.

The UNIFIL deputy commander was injured in Friday’s attack, which also left one of the convoy’s vehicles on fire.

The attack coincided with ongoing protests by Hezbollah supporters against a decision by the Lebanese authorities to prevent an Iranian aircraft from landing at Beirut airport.

The move came after the Israeli army accused Hezbollah and Iran’s Quds Force of using the airport to smuggle funds for the Lebanese group under the guise of civilian flights.

READ: Lebanon detains 25 people for questioning over attack on UN peacekeepers convoy in Beirut