Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni hailed Thursday a 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon that was announced by US President Donald Trump, saying it was "crucial" it be respected.The ceasefire "is excellent news, and I congratulate the Lebanese and Israeli governments for reaching this important milestone thanks to US mediation," Meloni said in a statement.
She said it was "now crucial that the ceasefire be fully respected" and hoped it will lead to "a full and lasting peace."
Italy will "continue to play its part by contributing to peacekeeping" through UNIFIL, and "by supporting Lebanese sovereignty, including by strengthening the Lebanese Armed Forces," she said.
UNIFIL is a peacekeeping mission established in 1978 in southern Lebanon.
Italy currently has 754 troops in UNIFIL, the second-largest contingent after Indonesia's 755, according to UN figures published March 30.
Rome accused Israeli forces earlier this week of firing warning shots at a convoy of Italian UN peacekeepers in Lebanon in an incident that it said damaged at least one vehicle but caused no injuries.
