UN observer's wife blames Israel

July 28, 2006

From correspondents in Ottawa

THE wife of a Canadian UN peacekeeper bombed in an Israeli air strike refused today to accept her husband is dead and accused Israel of intentionally bombing his UN outpost.

Precision-guided aerial bombs on Wednesday destroyed the UN base in El Khiam where Major Paeta Hess-von Kruedener served as an unarmed UN military observer about 10km from where the Syrian, Lebanese and Israeli borders meet.

Three other UN observers from China, Austria and Finland also died in the attack.

Major Hess-von Kruedener was "missing and presumed dead", said Canada's Prime Minister Stephen Harper yesterday.

But Cynthia Hess-von Kruedener told reporters at a Canadian forces base in Kingston, Ontario that her husband was in what should have been a safe place and could not have been killed accidentally.

"I've been told ... that the Israelis chose to bomb that site with three guided missiles," she said.

"They're UN soldiers. That should have been the safest place to be. They should not have bombed that site, period. That is intentional with three bombs.

"The building was clearly marked. Their vehicles are clearly marked. They are clearly marked as UN. So why were they firing on that base ... Why did they bomb the UN site?"

Mrs Hess-von Kruedener, refusing to fold to despair, pleaded with UN officials excavating the bunker in search of his body to expand their search in case he escaped the blast and wandered off.

"They need to look elsewhere because I have hope that he is out there somewhere and he needs help," she said.

"Paeta is still missing at this point in time, and I think that's an important thing for everyone to realise, that he's simply missing at this point ... I believe in the power of prayer, and now I'm asking for the world to pray for his safe return."

The Canadian soldier was due to return home on August 16, she said.