Rome, Oct 17 (IANS): Sixteen countries of the European Union (EU) contributing troops to the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) have agreed to increase political and diplomatic pressure on Israel to avoid further incidents involving the mission.

This decision was reached after a videoconference led by Italy's Defense Minister Guido Crosetto and French counterpart Sebastien Lecornu on Wednesday, amidst escalating clashes between the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) and Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, reports Xinhua news agency.

The videoconference involved key EU nations, including Ireland, Germany, Spain, Austria, and Greece, among others.

These countries collectively condemned attacks on UNIFIL bases, which have endangered the safety of the mission's over 10,000 personnel coming from 48 countries, and urged Israel to take preventive measures to ensure no more such incidents occur.

The Italian defence ministry said in a statement that a key conclusion of the meeting was "the shared will to exert utmost political and diplomatic pressure on Israel so that no further incidents occur." Meanwhile, the statement also stressed that Hezbollah cannot use UNIFIL personnel as a shield in the context of the conflict.

The call followed a series of IDF strikes on UNIFIL positions in southern Lebanon since October 9, which resulted in injuries to several peacekeepers.

Although Israel had asked UNIFIL to withdraw its troops within 5 km of the Israeli-Lebanese border, which would mean leaving all UNIFIL positions in south Lebanon, all countries contributing to the mission declined.

On Wednesday, the EU countries reiterated their commitment to maintaining a stable UNIFIL presence in the region and asserted that any changes to the mission's future should be decided collectively by the UN.