BEIRUT , Lebanon ( CNN ) -- A United Nations peacekeeper working to clear landmines died Wednesday in southern Lebanon , according to a spokeswoman for the U.N. Interim Force in Lebanon . U.N. peacekeepers have had a presence in Lebanon since 1978 after Israel withdrew . The person died in an explosion as the UNIFIL explosive ordnance disposal team surveyed a field near the village of Aitaroun , where mines are believed to have been planted , according to spokeswoman Yasmina Bouziane . It was UNIFIL 's second mine-related death since 2006 , she said . `` UNIFIL medical and explosive ordnance disposal teams were immediately dispatched to the location and an investigation is under way , '' she said . She would not disclose the person 's nationality and said she hoped to have more details about how the person was killed when the investigation is completed `` hopefully by tomorrow . '' There are about 15,000 UNIFIL troops in southern Lebanon . The force was set up in 1978 after Israeli forces withdrew from Lebanon , but more troops were added following the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah forces in Lebanon . Last week , the U.N. Security Council extended UNIFIL 's mandate for another year until August 2009 . Wednesday 's death is the first UNIFIL fatality since June , when a Spanish peacekeeper died in a road accident in southern Lebanon . Last year , a bomb attack hit a UNIFIL vehicle in June , killing six peacekeepers . A French peacekeeper with UNIFIL died a month later while clearing unexploded ordnance left over from the 2006 war . While it is unclear what type of device killed the member of the explosive ordinance disposal team on Wednesday , the United Nations has warned that the area is still covered in cluster munitions from the 2006 conflict . Last month , the head of the U.N . Mine Action Coordination Center of South Lebanon said it has removed half of the cluster munitions that were planted in southern Lebanon during the 34-day conflict between Israel and Hezbollah . CNN 's Nada Husseini in Beirut contributed to this report .
U.N. soldier dies during attempt to remove unexploded ordnance . It happened near Aitaroun , in southern Lebanon . A Spanish peacekeeper died in the area after a car accident in June .