Chok Bahadur Dhakal, a Nepali army officer stationed for peacekeeping in Lebanon, was attacked. Dhakal, the deputy force commander of the United Nations Interim Force (UNIFIL) in Lebanon, was attacked by pro-Hezbollah protesters while returning home.

After the attack, Dhakal was taken to the 'Label-3' hospital under the UNIFIL mission. According to Assistant Rathi Gaurav Kumar KC, spokesman of the Nepali Army, Dhakal was injured in the head. 

KC also informed that he is being treated and is out of danger. The condition of three other Nepalese peacekeepers who were attacked along with Dhakal is normal. Dhakal served as Deputy Force Commander in the UNIFIL mission for two years. He was attacked by protesters on the road near Beirut on Friday night while going to Rafik Hariri Airport to return to Nepal after his tenure. 

After the Lebanese government blocked the landing of two Iranian planes, protesters from the militant group Hezbollah blocked the airport. On his way to Dhakal airport, two vehicles escorted him. After crossing one of the vehicles, Dhakal was present and his rear vehicle was attacked. 

United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres has issued a statement strongly condemning the attack on UNIFIL peacekeepers. "Some peacekeepers were injured and a UNIFIL vehicle was also set on fire when a group of protesters attacked the main road of the airport," the statement said, adding, "Such attacks are unacceptable." The guilty should be held accountable. The security of United Nations personnel and property must always be respected.

UN Secretary-General Guterres commented that the attack against the peacekeepers is a violation of international laws, including humanitarian law.

He says that such incidents can also be war crimes. Secretary-General Guterres, noting that UNIFIL continues to work for peace in Lebanon, also urged all parties involved to fulfill their obligations under UN Security Council Resolution No. 1701. According to the resolution of 2006, UNIFIL should be granted unlimited freedom of movement throughout Lebanon for the operation and implementation of its activities. 

Secretary-General Guterres has stated that the ultimate goal of Security Council resolution 1701 is a permanent ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel. UNIFIL was formed after the end of the 2006 Lebanon war to monitor the buffer zone created along the Israeli border. It has posts in various locations in southern Lebanon. 

The UNIFIL mission headquarters also released a statement saying that it was shocked by the attack on the peacekeepers serving to establish security and stability in southern Lebanon. Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and the Lebanese army also condemned the attack on Dhakal. According to the BBC, President Aoun said that the incident was unacceptable and that those involved would be prosecuted. "The security forces will not be lenient towards any party that tries to destabilize and disrupt the peace of the country," President Aoun wrote on social media. 

Lebanese Interior Minister Ahmed al-Hajjar responded that the attack was a "crime against peacekeeping forces". According to Al Jazeera, Hajjar said that 25 people involved in the incident have been arrested. Hezbollah's allied group Amal Movement also called the attack on UNIFIL in southern Lebanon a 'stabbing attack on civil peace'. 

Because of the confrontation between Lebanon and Iran, supporters of the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah gathered outside Rafik Hariri Airport in Beirut since Thursday. Tensions flared after Lebanon blocked the landing of two Iranian planes. An Iranian plane was barred from landing in Beirut after the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) claimed that Iran's Kurdish forces had used an international flight to send weapons to Hezbollah. Hezbollah and Iran have denied that Rafiq Hariri Airport was used for arms smuggling. 

Lebanon-based Shia Muslim organization Hezbollah is an Iran-backed armed group. Hezbollah emerged from Iran's financial and military support after Israeli forces took control of southern Lebanon during the 1980s civil war. Israeli forces withdrew from southern Lebanon on 24 May 2000. Hezbollah says its actions forced Israel to leave Lebanon. With Israel's withdrawal from Lebanon, pressure to disarm Hezbollah increased. But ignoring it, Hezbollah continued to strengthen its military organization 'Islamic Resistance'. Because of this, the tension between the two parties continues. 

After the Palestinian group Hamas attacked Israel on 7 October 2023, the Israeli army launched a counter-offensive. After that, the Israel-Hezbollah war started after Hezbollah supported Hamas. The conflict escalated after Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah was killed during the battle. This affected the peacekeepers living in the border area between Israel and Lebanon, the 'Blue Line' (the border line drawn by the United Nations to reduce the conflict between the two countries). On November 27, 2024, Lebanon became peaceful with a ceasefire between the two sides mediated by countries including the US and France. But the tension started after the Iranian plane was banned from landing in Lebanon. 

The cease-fire agreement gave Israel and Hezbollah two months to withdraw their fighters and weapons from an area within about 30 kilometers of the ``Blue Line'' and the Litani River, the unofficial border between Lebanon and Israel. The agreement states that Hezbollah fighters in the southern region of Lebanon will be relocated and the Lebanese army will be deployed in the region. The period of implementation of the agreement has been extended till February 18. Israel says it is ready to withdraw troops from Lebanon in accordance with the agreement. Lebanon is deploying about 10,000 soldiers in the southern region.