JERUSALEM -- Israeli troops mistakenly killed a Norwegian U.N. soldier and injured another during maneuvers in southern Lebanon, officials said Monday.
During a military operation Sunday night in the eastern section of its self-declared security zone, the Israeli forces mistook the U.N. soldiers for enemy fighters from the pro-Iranian Hezbollah organization.
An Israeli tank fired three shells, killing Bjoern Hagen Skaar, 21, a Norwegian member of the U.N. Peacekeeping Forces in Lebanon, known as UNIFIL.
A second soldier, Oeyvind Berg, 21, was moderately injured, and later brought to the Rambam Hospital in Haifa.
The Israeli army, which is investigating the incident, formally apologized to the UNIFIL commander in southern Lebanon.
'The Norwegian soldiers were positioned well inside their area', said a U.N.spokesman.
Norwegian sources in Lebanon said there had been a number of recent attempts by pro-Iranian Hezbollah forces to infiltrate the Israeli security zone through this area.
Israel set up the security zone in southern Lebanon in 1985 in an attempt to prevent attacks from fundamentalist Muslim guerrillas on northern Israel. The Lebanese government has repeatedly called for Israel to withraw from the area.
.N.spokesman.
Norwegian sources in Lebanon said there had been a number of recent attempts by pro-Iranian Hezbollah forces to infiltrate the Israeli security zone through this area.
Israel set up the security zone in southern Lebanon in 1985 in an attempt to prevent attacks from fundamentalist Muslim guerrillas on northern Israel. The Lebanese government has repeatedly called for Israel to withraw from the area.
The Israeli army, which is investigating the incident, formally apologized to the UNIFIL commander in southern Lebanon.
'The Norwegian soldiers were positioned well inside their area', said a U.N.spokesman.
Norwegian sources in Lebanon said there had been a number of recent attempts by pro-Iranian Hezbollah forces to infiltrate the Israeli security zone through this area.
Israel set up the security zone in southern Lebanon in 1985 in an attempt to prevent attacks from fundamentalist Muslim guerrillas on northern Israel. The Lebanese government has repeatedly called for Israel to withraw from the area.
