The body of missing Canadian UN observer Maj. Paeta Hess-von Kruedener has been found -- almost a week after his observation base in southern Lebanon was hit during an Israeli air strike.

Hess-von Kruedener, 43, was killed along with three other UN observers after Israeli jets bombarded the town of Khiam, near the eastern end of Lebanon's border, on July 25.

The bodies of three soldiers from Austria, China and Finland were found shortly after the attack, but Hess-von Kruedener, a father of two grown children, remained missing until a body was positively identified as his on Monday.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper said he was "deeply saddened" to learn of Hess-von Kruedener's death.

"On behalf of the Government of Canada, I extend my profound sympathy to the family, friends and loved ones of this brave soldier, who served our country with distinction and honour," Harper said in a statement released Monday.

Last week, Hess-von Kruedener's family were hopeful he had survived the attack.

"I kind of equate it to an earthquake in India," his sister Tonya Hess told CTV Newsnet on Saturday.

"They pull people out after seven days. I think it's possible, and not only that, I believe that it is going to happen. I have full faith that he's going to be returned."

Bombing was "intentional"

Israel insisted the bombing was an accident, despite UN observers repeatedly warning the Israeli military about their location.

However, Hess-von Kruedener's wife, Cynthia, accused the Israeli military of deliberately attacking her husband's observer post.

"So why were the Israelis firing on that base? ... In my opinion, those were precision-guided missiles, so the attack was intentional," she told reporters outside her Kingston, Ont. home Thursday.

She also said that Israel had attacked the area several times before, "for weeks upon weeks," according to her husband. Her comments add fuel to the controversy over the bombing, which has included allegations from UN Secretary General Kofi Annan that the observers were deliberately targeted by Israel.

It's an allegation that has been vigorously denied by Israeli officials who insist on calling the incident "a tragic mistake."

At the heart of it lies information that has come out over the past few days that UN observers in Lebanon phoned the Israelis at least 10 times over a six-hour period pleading for the shelling of the position to stop.

When it became evident the shelling wasn't going to stop, the base commander called top UN officials in New York.

Ireland has filed an official protest over the incident as six of those specific phone warnings came from Lt.-Col. John Molloy, a senior Irish UN peacekeeper whose job was to liaise with the Israel Defence Forces.

On Saturday, two peacekeepers were wounded when an Israeli strike hit their UN station. UN observers had recently been relocated to peacekeepers' posts for their own safety.

Hess-von Kruedener had completed nine months of his one-year tour of duty with the UN in Lebanon.

He was an infantry officer with 20 years service and had done four earlier operational tours in Cyprus, twice in Bosnia, and Congo.