Lebanon says Israel violated territorial waters, airspace

BEIRUT

The Lebanese army has said that an Israeli drone and gunboat violated the Lebanese air space and maritime border.

An Israeli army drone violated the Lebanese airspace “from opposite the (southern) town of Ramyah towards the town of Marwahin for 20 minutes,” the Lebanese army said in a Monday’s statement.

Later, the army said in another statement that “a gunboat belonging to the Israeli enemy breached the Lebanese territorial waters off Ras Naqura, south of Lebanon, for about 203 meters (666 feet).”

The army stated it is following up the two breaches in coordination with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).

UNIFIL is a multinational peacekeeping force that has been deployed in southern Lebanon since 1978. Its primary objective is to maintain security in the region and monitor a cessation-of-hostilities agreement.

Following the 2006 war between Israel and Lebanese group Hezbollah, UNIFIL was tasked with ensuring the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which called for a cease-fire between the warring sides and an Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon.

The Israeli army’s violations of Lebanese sovereignty did not stop despite the signing of a maritime borders demarcation agreement under the US mediation last October.

Lebanon says Israel violates its airspace and territorial waters on an almost daily basis and calls on the UN to intervene to stop these violations, especially with regard to the Israeli bombing of Syria through Lebanese airspace.

*Writing by Mahmoud Barakat