- 4 sept 2011
Lebanon jails ex-general for leaking info to Israel
BEIRUT (AFP) -- Lebanon's military court on Saturday sentenced a former army general and high-profile member of a Christian party allied with Hezbollah to two years in prison for leaking information to Israel, a judicial source said.
"Military prosecutor Fadi Akiki has found retired general Fayez Karam guilty of contacting enemy [Israeli] intelligence... and providing them with political information," mainly on Hezbollah and its ally the Christian Free Patriotic Movement, the source told AFP.
Karam, who collapsed when the sentence was read, was also stripped of all civil rights, the source said.
The verdict did not find Karam guilty of spying for Israel, however.
The prosecutor also sentenced Lebanese fugitive Elias Karam, who had allegedly introduced Fayez Karam to Israeli officers in Paris, to 10 years in prison in absentia.
Fayez Karam, a member of the FPM, was arrested last summer, the first political figure to be detained in Lebanon as part of probe launched in 2009 into Israeli spy networks.
The 62-year-old had headed the Lebanese army's anti-terrorism and counter-espionage unit during the 1980s and was close to FPM leader Michel Aoun, who was army chief toward the end of the 1975-1990 civil war.
Aoun, who was staunchly anti-Syrian during the civil war, entered into a controversial alliance with the Iran and Syria-backed Hezbollah in 2006, a year after returning to Lebanon from exile in France.
More than 100 people have been arrested on suspicion of spying for the Israeli Mossad since April 2009, including members of the security forces and telecom employees.
Several have since been sentenced to death, including one found guilty of aiding Israel during its devastating 2006 war with Hezbollah.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=417517 19 oct 2011, 10:50 , Respect -
Maria 13 sept 2011
Lebanon hosts Conf on cluster bombs
Lebanese Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri (left), President Michel Sleiman (centre), and Prime Minister Najib Mikati (right) watch a documentary on the effects of cluster munitions in Lebanon on Monday in Beirut.
The delegates from more than 100 countries are participating in a five-day conference on cluster munitions with aim to eradicate the inhuman weapon.
Organizers have said that hundreds of thousands of unexploded cluster bombs remain in Lebanon after being dropped by Israel during the July 2006 war, The Daily Star reported on Tuesday.
“These bombs have until today disabled or killed more than 400 victims, therefore constituting a form of occupation [of the country],” Lebanese President Michel Sleiman said on Monday in his inaugural address in Beirut.
The conference will last through Friday.
Sleiman added, these weapons “still threaten our citizens' lives on a daily basis while we have not yet completely removed them and obliterated their impact.”
More than 200,000 unexploded cluster bombs have been found and made harmless since 2006, but millions still remain unfound in southern Lebanon.
The president said the primary reason the conference is being held in Lebanon because the country has suffered severely because of this inhuman weapon.
The UN investigations in southern Lebanon show that Israel dropped over four million cluster munitions during the last days of Tel Aviv's war on the country in 2006.
Sleiman went on to say that the legacy of the Israeli war machine throughout its aggression against Lebanon, especially during the month of July 2006, has caused huge devastation, claimed hundreds of innocent lives, and inflicted physical and moral suffering upon the Lebanese people.
An international convention on cluster munitions has been in force for over a year that requires signatories to give up the use, production, stockpiling and transfer of the weapons.
All the countries, which are participating in the Lebanon conference, have joined the convention.
The United States, Israel and Russia manufacture and stockpile most of the world's cluster munitions. They are among countries who have not signed the treaty.
International researchers say the US has transferred hundreds of thousands of cluster munitions, containing tens of millions of bomblets, to 28 countries in the world.
The worst affected countries are Lebanon, Iraq, Afghanistan and now Libya.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/198994.html...Read more 3 dec 2011, 22:34 , Respect -
Maria 15 sept 2011
'Israel, cluster munitions inseparable'
Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri
Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri says the Israeli regime and fatal cluster bombs cannot be separated from one another, Press TV reports.
Berri said on Wednesday that Israel has not even provided the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon with “maps that show the areas it targeted with cluster bombs” during the 2006 war on Lebanon, a Press TV correspondent reported.
The Lebanese official made the remarks at the conference of signatories to the UN Convention on Cluster Munitions in Beirut, which will run through September 16.
Berri said the application of cluster munitions by Israeli forces has led to the death of around 51 people and injured more than 350 others since the 2006 conflict.
“Israel continues to violate the Blue Line via land and air,” Berri added.
He said that the Lebanese parliament is working hard to make the country a place free of cluster bombs and that Lebanon, “which has suffered from these weapons," will lead the way to make the ban on cluster munitions and mines international.
The United Nations estimates that the Israeli regime used about four million cluster bombs over southern Lebanon during the final days of the 2006 war.
Israel launched an all-out offensive on Lebanon five years ago under the pretext of releasing Israeli soldiers allegedly captured by the Lebanese resistance movement Hezbollah in southern border region of the country.
Israel, however, suffered a crushing defeat and was forced to leave the region without achieving any of its objectives.
The United States and Israel, which have not joined the convention, manufacture and stockpile most of the world's cluster munitions.
International researchers say the US has transferred hundreds of thousands of cluster munitions, containing tens of millions of bomblets, to 28 countries in the world.
The Beirut conference brings together representatives of 80 of the 107 countries that have signed the convention, which calls for destruction of the deadly weapons.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/199236.html 4 dec 2011, 19:21 , Respect -
Maria 20 sept 2011
Lebanon warns against Israel intrusion
Lebanese parliament (file photo)
Lebanon has warned about officially complaining to the UN Security Council against Israel for its encroachment into the Lebanese territorial waters, Press TV reports.
The Lebanese cabinet issued the warning in a session on Tuesday during which it determined the line of demarcation for the country's exclusive economic zone in its maritime borders, a Press correspondent reported.
In July, Israel approved a map of what it described as “proposed maritime borders.” Lebanon, on the other hand, condemned the move, calling it “an aggression.”
Meanwhile, Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri said in the cabinet meeting that Lebanon has the right to preserve its natural resources.
Berri urged Lebanese authorities to speed up the process of contracting foreign companies to carry out drilling projects on the oil and gas fields in the exclusive economic zone.
Lebanese President Michel Sleiman is also expected to raise the issue on the sidelines of the annual gathering of world leaders at the UN General Assembly, which begins on September 20.
Israel also violates Lebanon's airspace on an almost daily basis.
In 2009, Lebanon lodged a complaint with the United Nations, presenting over 7,000 documents pertaining to Israeli violations of the Lebanese airspace and territory.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/200225.html
22 sept 2011
Israeli aircraft breach Lebanon airspace
Israeli military aircraft have violated Lebanese airspace and have flown over parts of the country in blatant violation of a UN Security Council resolution, Lebanese Army says.
According to a statement released by the Lebanese Army on Thursday, six Israeli warplanes penetrated Lebanese airspace at 10:35 a.m. (0735 GMT) on Wednesday, Press TV reports.
“The Israeli warplanes entered Lebanon over the southern border and flew over different Lebanese territories before leaving at 12:20 p.m. (0920 GMT),” the statement said.
Israel violates Lebanon's airspace on an almost daily basis.
Lebanon's government, the Hezbollah resistance movement and the UN Interim Force in Lebanon, known as UNIFIL, have repeatedly condemned the overflights, saying they are in clear violation of UN Resolution 1701 and the country's sovereignty.
UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which brokered a ceasefire in the war Israel launched against Lebanon in 2006, calls on Tel Aviv to respect Beirut's sovereignty and territorial integrity.
In 2009, Lebanon filed a complaint with the United Nations, presenting over 7,000 documents pertaining to Israeli violation of Lebanese territory.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/200585.html 4 dec 2011, 19:22 , Respect -
Maria 1 oct 2011
Israeli plane violates Lebanese airspace
An Israeli reconnaissance plane has penetrated Lebanese airspace in blatant violation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, the Lebanese army says.
The Lebanese military said in a statement on Saturday that the Israeli aircraft entered Lebanese airspace from the southern border at 10:05 a.m. (0705 GMT) on Friday and flew over several areas of the country, a Press TV correspondent reported.
The plane then left the country at 3:15 p.m. (1215 GMT), the statement said.
Israel violates Lebanon's airspace on an almost daily basis.
Lebanon's government, the Hezbollah resistance movement and the UN Interim Force in Lebanon, known as UNIFIL, have repeatedly condemned the fly-overs, saying they are in clear violation of UN Resolution 1701 and the country's sovereignty.
UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which brokered a ceasefire in the war Israel launched against Lebanon in 2006, calls on Tel Aviv to respect Beirut's sovereignty and territorial integrity.
In 2009, Lebanon filed a complaint with the United Nations, presenting over 7,000 documents pertaining to Israeli violation of Lebanese territory.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/202113.html
UN: Israel violates Lebanon airspace
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VKLkmV_-B5o
The outgoing UN special coordinator for Lebanon says Israeli drones violate Lebanon's sovereignty on an almost daily basis in blatant violation of international law, Press TV reports.
“With regard to the over-flights, these are almost daily occurrences and...It is difficult to think of another country anywhere in the world, subject to such a regime of perpetual intrusion and violation of their sovereignty,” Michael Williams told a press conference at United Nations headquarters on Thursday.
Lebanon's government, the Hezbollah resistance movement and the UN Interim Force in Lebanon, known as UNIFIL, have repeatedly condemned the flyovers, saying they are a flagrant breach of UN Resolution 1701 and the country's sovereignty.
UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which brokered a ceasefire in the war Israel launched against Lebanon in 2006, calls on Tel Aviv to respect Beirut's sovereignty and territorial integrity.
In 2009, Lebanon filed a complaint with the United Nations, presenting over 7,000 documents pertaining to Israeli violation of Lebanese territory.
Williams ends his term after serving three years as UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon.
He told the press conference that the UN peacekeepers in Lebanon have been attacked frequently this year, as separate roadside bombings claimed French lives in one case and Italian casualties in another.
The top UN envoy pointed out that those who pulled off the roadside bombings are still active.
Although Williams said his life was never threatened directly, he noted that he was occasionally under "hostile surveillance" from people he did not know.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/203243.html
26 oct 2011
Israel military violates Lebanon airspace
The Israeli military has once again violated Lebanon's airspace by flying a renaissance plane over the country's territory, the Lebanese Army says.
According to a statement by the Lebanese Army, the Israeli aircraft violated Lebanese airspace on Tuesday over the border town of Alma al-Shaab at 7:15 a.m. local time.
The remote-controlled drone left Lebanese airspace the village of al-Naqoura on Wednesday at 3:00 a.m. after hovering over the southern parts of the country and the capital, Beirut, for almost 20 hours, a Press TV correspondent reported.
Israel violates Lebanon's airspace on an almost daily basis, claiming the flights serve surveillance purposes.
Lebanon's government, the Hezbollah resistance movement and the UN Interim Force in Lebanon, known as UNIFIL, have repeatedly condemned the flyovers, saying they are in clear violation of UN Resolution 1701 and the country's sovereignty.
UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which brokered a ceasefire in the war Israel launched against Lebanon in 2006, calls on Tel Aviv to respect Beirut's sovereignty and territorial integrity.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/206820.html
31 oct 2011
Hezbollah must not disarm: Jumblatt
Walid Jumblatt speaks in Aley, Lebanon, Sunday, October 30, 2011.
Progressive Socialist Party of Lebanon leader Walid Jumblatt has said that Hezbollah must remain armed to defend the country against the enemy, Press TV reports.
Jumblatt said national dialogue is the only way to resolve the issue of the national defense strategy, including the issue of Hezbollah's weapons, which are essential for Lebanon's security, a Press TV correspondent reported on Sunday.
“The principle of the state is important to everyone, including the resistance,” he added.
The Lebanese government says Hezbollah's military capability is part of Lebanon's national defense.
In addition, Jumblatt announced that he would be running for the leadership of his party one last time.
“My candidacy today is the last one and we should consider the new council to be elected as a transitional or temporary council until we reach new elections that should take not longer than a year,” he said during his party's annual general assembly meeting in Aley, 17 kilometers south of Beirut.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/207566.html 11 feb 2012, 00:14 , Respect -
Maria 17 nov 2011
Hezbollah: UN serves Western interests
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon
Hezbollah has condemned a recent report by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon for serving the interests of the Western powers, Press TV reports.
"The UN secretary general Ban Ki-Moon has shown once again his completely biased stance in favor of the Western will, which appointed him," Hezbollah said in a statement on Thursday, noting that the move was in contradiction with the UN's mission of promoting peace and security through the world.
The Lebanese resistance movement was referring to the United Nations latest report on the Security Council Resolution 1701 that ended Lebanon's war with Israel in 2006.
In his 17th report on Resolution 1701 released on Tuesday, Ban claimed that Hezbollah and other armed groups in Lebanon pose a threat to sovereignty and stability in the country.
Hezbollah responded by blaming the UN chief for repeating "the Western statements and allegations which stem completely from hostility towards the resistance and disregard for the feelings of the Lebanese people."
The report is full of fallacies and it reveals exasperation with the Lebanese resort to strengthen its stance in favor of resistance against Israeli occupation and Tel Aviv's continuous aggressions against the Lebanese, the statement pointed out.
Hezbollah also criticized Ban for overseeing facts on the ground, including the stability established with the help of the resistance movement in the south of Lebanon, citing admissions by many international officials who described the south more secure than anywhere else in Lebanon.
"Hezbollah condemns this new stance from the UN secretary general and believes that the hegemony of Western powers, especially the US over the UN institutions poses a great danger to international peace and security, and pushes these Western powers to freely violate the rights of the peoples and nations that refuse to bow down to the Western will," the statement said.
The UN Secretary General submits a report on the implementation of UNSC Resolution 1701 every four months. The Security Council will discuss the latest report on November 29.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/210644.html 11 feb 2012, 00:15 , Respect -
Maria 21 nov 2011
CIA intelligence fiasco in Lebanon
Hezbollah has dealt a heavy blow to CIA operations in Lebanon, forcing the intelligence agency to curtail its espionage activities in the country, US officials say.
According to current and former US officials, CIA operations in Lebanon have been badly damaged after the resistance movement identified and captured a number of US spies this year, AP reported.
They have also said that CIA officials have secretly been scrambling in recent months to protect their remaining spies, foreign assets or agents working for the agency, before Hezbollah finds them.
Giving credit to Hezbollah for uncovering the espionage rings, the US officials blamed negligence by CIA managers and sloppy practices used by the spies for their networks being discovered in Lebanon, which is considered a key watching post for collecting crucial intelligence on Middle East countries including Syria and Iran.
It remains unclear whether anyone has been or will be held accountable in the wake of this counterintelligence disaster.
Hezbollah Secretary General Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah in June announced the arrest of several spies affiliated with the CIA, who had infiltrated the ranks of the group. Nasrallah said that CIA officers, posing as diplomats at the US Embassy in Beirut, had recruited them in early 2011.
At the time, US officials denied the report, but now current and former US officials concede that Hezbollah busted several US spy rings and arrested a number of American spies, which affected CIA espionage activities in Lebanon.
"Beirut station is out of business," said one source using the CIA terminology.
In April 2009, Lebanon launched a nationwide crackdown on spy cells, mostly Israeli networks, arresting nearly 100 people, including members of the country's security forces and telecommunications personnel, on suspicion of espionage for Mossad.
A number of the suspects have admitted to their role in helping Israel identify targets inside Lebanon, mostly belonging to Hezbollah, which Tel Aviv heavily bombed during its 2006 war against the country.
If convicted, the spies will face life sentences with hard labor. Should they be found guilty of contributing to the loss of Lebanese lives, the agents will face capital punishment.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/211346.html
Lebanese leader backs Hezbollah force
Hezbollah fighters
Leader of a Lebanese Sunni group has reiterated his support for the country's premier Islamic resistance movement Hezbollah, insisting that it must maintain its arms and fighting capabilities.
In a meeting with a delegation from West Bekaa Valley, Sheikh Ahmed Kattan, president of Lebanese Sunni group Qawlona W Al-A'mal, said, "We say to the entire world, we as Sunni Muslims stick to the weapons of the resistance in Lebanon before the others, because Hezbollah is a part of our lives and our soul, (and) those who abandon it will be giving up their honor and dignity," Ahlul Bayt News Agency reported Sunday.
The Israeli regime waged a 33-day military offensive against Lebanon in 2006 with the prime objective of destroying Hezbollah's military infrastructure but eventually left southern Lebanon without achieving any of its objectives.
The Israeli invasion claimed the lives of nearly 1,200 Lebanese people, most of them civilians.
Tel Aviv has been reportedly planning to launch its third war against Lebanon, exploiting the regional countries' current heightened preoccupation with their domestic upheavals.
“Hezbollah is in a state of alert and it anticipates an Israeli attack on Lebanon at any moment,” Lebanon's English-language newspaper The Daily Star reported on October 20.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/211237.html 11 feb 2012, 00:15 , Respect -
Maria 22 nov 2011
Lebanese celebrate independence day
Lebanese President Michel Sleiman
The Lebanese have commemorated the 68th anniversary of independence from France in the capital Beirut, Press TV reports.
Lebanese President Michel Sleiman and Prime Minister Najib Mikati, along with other high-ranking officials, including Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, also attended the ceremony on Tuesday, a Press TV correspondent reported.
In an address to the Lebanese people participating in the event, President Sleiman said, “The best path toward independence lies in our national charter and in our total allegiance to our homeland.”
The Lebanese president said that Lebanon has reached a time of sovereignty over its land despite the fact that Israel is still occupying parts of the country.
“Everyone knows that we have a right to resist and safeguard our territory. As the Lebanese show awareness of what is happening around them, they are still committed to any reformative step and just Arab cause, topped by the Palestinian cause,” Sleiman added.
The Tuesday independence ceremony also included a military parade.
Lebanon achieved its independence from France after more than 23 years on November 22, 1943.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/211512.html 11 feb 2012, 00:15 , Respect -
Maria 24 nov 2011
'Israel explosive' goes off in Lebanon
Lebanese soldier stands guard in front of flames rising from fuel tanks at Beirut Rafiq Hariri International Airport after an Israeli airstrike on July 14, 2006 during the 33-Day War.
The Lebanese Army has reported a blast in the south of the country, which it suspects has been caused by the explosion of an Israeli cluster bomb or landmine, Press TV reports.
The Army dispatched a unit to the vicinity of the Siddiqin village, where the incident took place late on Tuesday, a Press TV correspondent reported.
“Probably, what happened was a result of a mine or cluster bomb possibly dropped by Israel [in its 2006 war on Lebanon] exploding,” the forces said in a statement on Wednesday.
The most tragic incident took place in the village of Qana, 12 kilometers (7.5 miles) north of the border with Israel, where Israeli warplanes bombed a residential building, killing large numbers of children.
The Lebanese resistance movement of Hezbollah's fighters fought off the 33-Day War, preventing Tel Aviv from achieving any of its objectives.
The offensives, however, killed about 1,200 Lebanese, most of them civilians. The most tragic incident took place in the village of Qana, 12 kilometers (7.5 miles) north of the country's border with Israel, where Israeli warplanes bombed a residential building, killing large numbers of children.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/211777.html...Read more 11 feb 2012, 00:15 , Respect -
Maria 25 nov 2011
'LAF will fight against Israel in next conflict'
Lebanese soldier
IDF commander estimates Lebanese army will join Hezbollah in next conflict in backdrop of mysterious blast in South Lebanon earlier this week.
A mysterious blast in a Hezbollah depot in South Lebanon rocked the relatively quiet northern sector this week prompting reports that Israel was behind the explosion. On the other side of the border, the IDF is ready for any development which may involve Hezbollah or even the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF).
Commander of the Herev Battalion Lieutenant-Colonel Shadi Abu Fares oversaw a drill simulating border clashes earlier this week. Abu Fares says that Lebanese troops deployed on the border prevented pro-Palestinian protesters from approaching the border fence on Naksa Day last June, but are unlikely to flee to the north in the next conflict.
"It is our estimate that they will take part in the fighting. They are regarded as the enemy. We have no intention of opening fire at them and they are aware of their responsibilities on the border," Abu Fares told Ynet.
Tensions between Israel and the LAF have grown in the past year and a half, as Lebanon moved from pro-Western rulers to a Hezbollah-affiliated regime.
Last August, an IDF patrol driving along the border was attacked. Some Lebanese reports claimed that a Lebanese soldier was injured in the incidence which occurred exactly one year after Lieutenant-Colonel Dov Harari was killed in a fire exchange on the border.
No other battalion is as familiar with the Lebanese border as the Druze Battalion. Its combatants have spent the last decade deployed in the area.
But even they cann't predict what shape the next conflict will take. "The main scenario we are preparing for is one of infiltration which also entails an abduction threat," Lt. Col. Abu Fares says.
"The war has greatly deterred Hezbollah and Nasrallah is still hiding in bunkers fearing a targeted killing. Since the war Hezbollah has not fired one shot but its men are still hidden on the line."
http://fwd4.me/0hQX 11 feb 2012, 00:15 , Respect -
Maria 29 nov 2011
Al-Qaeda-linked group 'claims Israel rocket attack'
BEIRUT (AFP) -- A group linked to Al-Qaeda on Tuesday claimed responsibility for an overnight rocket attack from southern Lebanon against Israel, a local website announced.
Elnashra website said it had received an email from the Brigades of Abdullah Azzam claiming responsibility for the attack.
"Early this Tuesday, rockets from the Brigades of Abdullah Azzam shelled the Zionist colonies in northern Palestine... and reached their aim," the email message reads.
The same group claimed responsibility for the last rocket attack from southern Lebanon against Israel in 2009.
Tuesday's attack prompted a retaliatory strike from Israel but there were no casualties on either side.
Abdullah Azzam was late Al-Qaeda chief Osama Bin Laden's mentor. He was killed in a 1989 bomb blast.
The area from where the rockets were launched against Israel on Tuesday is largely controlled by Lebanon's militant group Hezbollah.
The Shiite group, which fought a devastating war with Israel in 2006, had no immediate comment on the incident which raised tension in the volatile region.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=440539
Rockets fired from Lebanon hit Israel
JERUSALEM (Reuters) -- Several rockets fired from Lebanon hit northern Israel on Tuesday, and Israel returned fire across the border in response, military officials said.
Two buildings in the western Galilee area were damaged, Israeli media said, but there were no reported casualties. Residents said they heard two explosions and that houses shook.
UNIFIL, the UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon, said it had deployed extra troops and patrols in the area and called for restraint. "This is a serious incident in violation of UN Security Council resolution 1701 and is clearly directed at undermining stability in the area," UNIFIL said in a statement.
An Israeli military spokesman said the rockets were the first fired since 2009 across a border where a 34-day war was fought in 2006 between Israel and Iranian-backed Hezbollah fighters in Lebanon.
"Several rockets hit the western Galilee. The Israeli army considers the incident severe and is targeting origins of fire," said a statement from the military spokesman's office.
A Lebanese security official said loud explosions were heard overnight in Lebanon's southern Bint Jbeil area but could not give any further details.
"At about 2:00 a.m. we heard blasts in that area and we are checking to determine what happened," he said early Tuesday.
A similar incident more than a year ago left two Lebanese soldiers, a journalist and a senior Israeli officer dead.
And in May 2011, Israeli troops killed 10 people and wounded more than 110 others on the border in south Lebanon during a Palestinian refugee protest to mark the anniversary of the 1948 creation of Israel, which Palestinians term the "Nakba," or catastrophe.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=440338 11 feb 2012, 00:15 , Respect -
Maria 2 dec 2011
Israel destroys spy device in Lebanon
An Israeli surveillance plane has remotely detonated an espionage device Israel planted in south Lebanon.
The incident took place in the Bint Jbeil district of southern Lebanon after Hezbollah members discovered the spying device, according to Hezbollah's Al-Manar TV, AFP reported on Friday.
The report added that the device was planted to eavesdrop on Hezbollah's telecommunications network.
Israel violates Lebanon's airspace on an almost daily basis, claiming that the over-flights serve surveillance purposes.
Lebanon's government, the Hezbollah resistance movement, and the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) have repeatedly cited Israel's air surveillance flights over Lebanon as clear violations of UN Resolution 1701 and the country's sovereignty.
UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which brokered a ceasefire in the war of aggression Israel launched against Lebanon in 2006, calls on Tel Aviv to respect Beirut's sovereignty and territorial integrity.
In 2009, Lebanon filed a complaint with the United Nations, presenting over 7,000 documents pertaining to Israeli violations of Lebanese airspace and territory.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/213483.html
Report: 2 injured in explosion in south Lebanon
BEIRUT (Ma'an) -- Two people were injured Friday in an explosion in southern Lebanon, the Beirut-based Daily Star newspaper reported Friday, quoting local residents.
The report mentioned the possibility of a drone airstrike being behind the blast.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=441366 11 feb 2012, 00:15 , Respect -
Maria 4 dec 2011
'Hezbollah intercepting Israeli threats'
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2AHhU7cmB_0
The head of the Hezbollah executive council says the resistance movement is fully prepared to counter any Israeli threats against Lebanon's sovereignty, Press TV reports.
Sayyed Hashem Safi al-Din made the remark on Saturday, a day after Hezbollah members discovered an Israeli espionage device planted in south Lebanon.
“This is clear proof that the resistance is alert and performing its duty. It is clear proof that the Israelis are not yet through with Lebanon and that it is still a target of the Israelis,” Safi al-Din said.
An Israeli surveillance plane remotely detonated the device in the Bint Jbeil district of southern Lebanon on Friday after it was discovered.
Safi al-Din added that Lebanon's sovereignty “is being violated daily by Israeli surveillance planes and drones.”
This is not the first such Israeli violation of Lebanese sovereignty that has been thwarted by Hezbollah. The resistance movement had also uncovered a number of Israeli espionage devices in several areas of southern Lebanon in 2009 and 2010.
Timur Goksel, a former senior adviser to the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), told Press TV that Hezbollah is not a weak organization and it is paying “very big attention” to intelligence and security work.
“They (Hezbollah) are making very good use of their popularity with the people. The people report to them in the villages. That is a fantastic source for any intelligence organization,” Goksel said.
The Lebanese government, Hezbollah, and UNIFIL have repeatedly cited Israel's surveillance flights over Lebanon as clear violations of UN Security Council Resolution 1701 and the country's sovereignty.
Resolution 1701, which brokered a ceasefire in the war of aggression Israel launched against Lebanon in 2006, calls on Tel Aviv to respect Beirut's sovereignty and territorial integrity.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/213763.html
Website presents photos of 'Israeli espionage device'
Hezbollah-affiliated website releases photos of large battery cases and transmission device which terrorist group claimed to have been bombed by Israel.
A Hezbollah-affiliated website uploaded photos of an alleged Israeli espionage device in south Lebanon which was supposedly exposed by Hezbollah on Friday.
"This device, which was bombed by the Israeli Air Force, illustrates the extent of Israeli violation of Lebanon's sovereignty and a violation of Security Council resolution 1701 as well as Hezbollah's achievement in exposing it," the website said.
According to sources associated with Hezbollah, the installation was placed underground in close proximity to the local communications network and contains large battery cases. It also contains another device which transmits information through the air.
On Friday, it was reported that two people were injured after an explosion was heard in southern Lebanon towns.
Addressing reports on the incident, Hezbollah said in a statement that it "has thwarted an Israeli spy operation by uncovering a wireless device in a valley between the towns of Srifa and Deir Kifa."
The terror group claimed that after the device was exposed, "the Zionist enemy bombed it with a drone. No operative was hurt."
A week ago, Lebanese media outlets said that a massive explosion rocked a Hezbollah stronghold near the town of Siddiqin in southern Lebanon. The blast was alleged to have occurred at a secret Hezbollah arms cache. The organization closed the area off to local security forces.
http://fwd4.me/0i0p 11 feb 2012, 00:15 , Respect -
Maria 9 dec 2011
Blast wounds French UN troops in South Lebanon
TYRE, Lebanon (Reuters) -- A roadside bomb wounded five French peacekeepers in southern Lebanon on Friday, in the third attack this year on United Nations forces deployed near the frontier with Israel.
The blast hit a jeep carrying French UNIFIL troops on the outskirts of the Mediterranean port city of Tyre.
"I can confirm that a UNIFIL vehicle was hit by an explosion in Tyre," UNIFIL spokesman Andrea Tenenti said. "Five peacekeepers were injured."
The attack follows bombings in May and July against French and Italian peacekeepers and comes as the United Nations prepares a review of its 12,000-strong operation, which was beefed up after Israel's 34-day war with Hezbollah in 2006.
A Reuters reporter saw a jeep with its windows blown out and several wounded peacekeepers at the scene minutes after the explosion in the Burj al-Shamali district on the eastern edge of Tyre.
Most of the injuries were light but medical sources said one of the UNIFIL soldiers was badly wounded.
Security sources said two passersby were also hurt.
Italy reduced its contribution to UNIFIL to 1,100 soldiers from 1,800 after six of its peacekeepers were wounded in May, although diplomats said the decision to cut its contingent had been taken before the attack.
Two months later six French soldiers were wounded in another attack.
"Disgraceful" attack
Tenenti said Friday's bombing would "not divert us from our task" and Lebanon's Prime Minister Najib Mikati also said the peacekeepers would continue their mission.
"Lebanon considers these attacks as targeting its own security and stability, not only UNIFIL," Mikati said. "These attacks will not have an influence on UNIFIL's work in the south, nor on the French contingent."
Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said France would "not be intimidated by such disgraceful acts," urging Lebanon to bring the perpetrators to justice and ensure the safety and freedom of movement of UN forces.
UNIFIL has about 12,000 troops and naval personnel in Lebanon after its expansion under UN Security Council resolution 1701 that halted the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war in southern Lebanon.
It operates alongside 15,000 Lebanese army troops who are deployed in the south of the country to keep peace near the border with Israel and prevent weapons transfers in an area that is a stronghold of Hezbollah guerrillas.
The UN Security Council called in August for a review of UNIFIL operations in Lebanon by the end of the year, aimed partly at assessing whether the Lebanese army could assume greater role in operations. Diplomats say the results of the review are unlikely to be issued for several months.
The border area has remained relatively quiet since 2006, although 10 Palestinian demonstrators were killed in May after Israeli troops opened fire on a protest on the Lebanese side of the border, the Lebanese army and security sources said.
Last year a senior Israeli officer, two Lebanese soldiers and a Lebanese journalist were killed when Lebanese and Israeli troops clashed at the border.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=443441 11 feb 2012, 00:15 , Respect -
Maria 12 dec 2011
Rocket fired towards Israel injures Lebanese villager
TYRE, Lebanon (AFP) -- A woman was injured after a rocket fired in southern Lebanon landed in a Lebanese village near the border with Israel, a senior security official told AFP.
The Katyusha rocket, fired from Lebanon's Bent Jbail valley, landed in the village of Hula, Lebanon near the border with Israel, said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity.
It was the first such attack since a series of rockets were fired two weeks go from southern Lebanon landed inside Israel.
Although no one was hurt in those attacks, they were the first fired rockets from Lebanon towards Israel in two years and prompted a return of fire by the Israeli army.
An obscure Al-Qaeda-linked group calling itself the Brigades of Abdullah Azzam claimed responsibility for the latest attack, as it did for the projectiles fired two weeks ago.
The same group claimed responsibility for the last rocket attack from southern Lebanon against Israel in 2009.
In 2006, Israel launched a war against Hezbollah that destroyed much of Lebanon's infrastructure and killed more than 1,200 Lebanese -- mainly civilians -- and 160 Israelis, mainly soldiers.
The Israeli campaign had little effect on Hezbollah's operational capacity.
And in May 2011, tensions once again flared as protesters massed on the border between the two countries to mark the anniversary of the 1948 creation of Israel and the subsequent displacement of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians, named the "nakba," or catastrophe.
Israeli troops killed 10 people and wounded more than 110 others as protesters tried to flood across the border from Lebanon.
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