4 UN military observers wounded by shelling in southern Lebanon

Amid Israel-Lebanon tensions, four United Nations military observers were wounded after a shell exploded near them while patrolling along the southern Lebanese border.

The military observers were part of the UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon. United Nations Truce Supervision Organization supports the peacekeeping mission in southern Lebanon--UNIFIL.

The UN mission said that those injured were being treated and they are investigating the blast. 

They condemned the attack and said targeting of peacekeepers as "unacceptable".

The Lebanese local media reported that the Israeli "enemy drones" raided the area, where the observers were wounded. However, Israel refuted the allegations.

The tensions between Israel and Lebanon's Hezbollah group intensified since the Gaza war after Hamas's October 7 attacks.

Hezbollah is a Lebanese Shia Muslim militant group with close ties to Iran and an ally of Hamas.

Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant on Friday said that IDF would increase its attacks against the group in Lebanon, "shifting from repelling to actively pursuing Hezbollah".

UNIFIL spokesperson Andrea Tenenti said they are investigating the origin of the explosion.

The fighting has so far killed nine civilians and 11 soldiers in Israel, while more than 240 Hezbollah fighters and about 50 civilians were killed in Lebanon.

UNIFIL was created to oversee the withdrawal of Israeli troops from southern Lebanon after Israel's 1978 invasion. 

The UN expanded its mission following the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah, allowing peacekeepers to deploy along the Israeli border to help the Lebanese military extend its authority into the country's south for the first time in decades.