 BEIRUT, Lebanon - LebanonÂ’s army has begun setting up checkpoints near dozens of illegal border crossings with Syria and Israel in a bid to help prevent arms smuggling in the region, a Lebanese military official said Friday. The plan is apparently aimed primarily at preventing arms supplies from reaching Hezbollah guerrillas _ a key demand of last weekÂ’s U.N. cease-fire resolution that ended 34 days of ferocious fighting between Israel and Hezbollah.
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Lebanese troops will set up checkpoints near roads close to illegal border crossings to keep a check on the illegal smuggling of arms as well as people and goods, said the official. The army plan covers an estimated 60 illegal border crossings with Syria in northern and eastern Lebanon. The first checkpoints were set up Friday but the official did not say how many, the official said.
The plan also covers border crossings with Israel in south and southeastern Lebanon which have been closed since the creation of Israel more than half a century ago. The official crossings with Israel, however, have been used by peacekeepers and during prisoner exchanges. |