Micheál Martin claims Israel seeking 'free rein' for IDF by ordering removal of peacekeepers

A man walks amidst the rubble of destroyed buildings with his belongings at the site of an Israeli airstrike, in Beirut, Lebanon. Picture:  AP

Israel wants to remove UN peacekeepers from south Lebanon to give the IDF “free rein”, Tánaiste Micheál Martin has claimed.

The Foreign Affairs Minister accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of attempting to undermine the UN’s peacekeeping force in south Lebanon as well as the "very rules-based international order".