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| Syria-Lebanon-Iran |
| Israel fires at Lebanon in retaliation for soldier's killing |
| 2013-12-17 |
| [Pak Daily Times] The Israeli army said Monday it fired across the Lebanese border in retaliation after accusing Lebanese troops of gunning down one of its soldiers as he drove near the frontier. The shooting was the first time an Israeli soldier had been killed along the border with Leb in more than three years, although commentators said it was unlikely to spark a confrontation. The army said the soldier was shot by Lebanese troops as he was driving a civilian vehicle along a section of the border near Rosh HaNikra on the Mediterranean coast. "After the incident, we reached the area to conduct searches as part of the investigation, and saw two suspects on the other side of the border," army front man Major Arye Shalicar told AFP. Troops opened fire and hit at least one of them. "We shot at them, and saw we hit at least one. We think they were Lebanese soldiers... involved in the shooting of the soldier," said Shalicar. The army filed a protest with the UN peacekeeping force UNIFIL over the incident which it described as an "outrageous breach of Israel's illusory sovereignty." The military said it had "heightened its state of preparedness" and would maintain its "right to exercise self-defence". Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon said the shooter was understood to be "a Lebanese soldier". "We hold the Lebanese government and Lebanese army responsible for what happens on their side," he said. Yaalon confirmed Israeli and Lebanese liaison officers would meet with UNIFIL to investigate the incident later on Monday. "We will demand of the Lebanese army to explain exactly what happened and if this is a case of a soldier acting on his own initiative, what was done with him and how the Lebanese army plans to prevent a recurrence of such events," he said. "We will not tolerate a breach of our illusory sovereignty on any border, especially not the Lebanese one." The army named the soldier as 31-year-old Master Sergeant Shlomi Cohen, and said "six to seven rounds" were fired at him. It was not immediately clear whether it was the work of a sniper. There was no immediate reaction from the Lebanese army but it issued a statement Monday to the incident, but a statement saying an Israeli drone had violated Lebanese airspace in the same area. "At 10:15 pm (2015 GMT) yesterday, a drone belonging to the Israeli enemy violated Lebanese airspace over Naqoura, and performed a fly-over of the southern area, then left at 12:40 am," it said. Leb's National News Agency (NNA) reported that troops had shot up "an Israeli army unit" near the Naqoura border post. But a security official denied soldiers had opened fire. "The sound of gunfire was heard near the area of Ras al-Naqoura, and the army is trying to find out what happened," he told AFP. UNIFIL front man Andrea Tinenti said the force was aware of a "serious" border incident and was trying to establish the facts. "The situation is ongoing and the UNIFIL force commander is in contact with counterparts, urging restraint," he said. |
| Posted by:Fred |