World

Hezbollah-Affiliated Media Sneak Up on 'IDF Troops' Along Lebanon Border (PHOTO)

Earlier, the Israeli Defence Forces reported that they had discovered a second tunnel dug from Lebanon into Israel as part of operation Northern Shield, an Israeli campaign to find and destroy tunnels allegedly dug by Hezbollah militants to enable them to illegally transfer militants and arms into Israel.
Sputnik

The media relations department of Lebanese political and militant group Hezbollah has released photos showing what appear to be Israeli troops operating in the border area between Israel and Lebanon, Al-Masdar news has reported.

The photos, released Sunday afternoon, are said to show IDF troops operating near Meiss Ej Jabal village, situated along Lebanon's southeastern border with Israel.

Ex-Israeli Defence Chief Lambasts Operation to Destroy Hezbollah Tunnels
One of the photos shows what appears to be UN Interim Force in Lebanon observers monitoring the IDF's operations from the Israeli side of the border in Upper Galilee.

The IDF has not commented on the authenticity of the images.

Hezbollah-affiliated al-Manar TV station correspondent Ali Shoaib snapped images from the area, and published video footage of Israeli troops interacting with UN forces.

Israel began Operation Northern Shield last Tuesday. The UN force confirmed the existence of one tunnel running from Lebanese territory into Israel. Beirut has called on Tel Aviv to provide detailed, hard proof about the alleged tunnel network, with a source telling Lebanese media that the tunnel which was found was "old and deserted."

Hezbollah Official: All of Israel Within Reach of Our Missiles
On Thursday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu downplayed fears of clashes with Hezbollah over the border operation. On Sunday, Hezbollah second in command Sheikh Naim Qassem warnedTel Aviv there was "not a single point" in Israeli territory that was "out of reach of Hezbollah's missiles" in the event of hostilities.

Israel and Lebanon last clashed in 2006, with Israeli forces invading the country after Hezbollah kidnapped two Israeli soldiers in a cross-border raid. The conflict, which lasted 34 days and claimed the lives of over 1,300 people, was halted by a UN-brokered ceasefire. Lebanese-Israeli relations have been poor for decades, but tensions have been exacerbated recently amid Israeli suspicions that Hezbollah was being used by Iran as a proxy to wage war on Israel.

Discuss