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Sunday, 17 July 2011

Ten Israeli aircraft enter Lebanon

Ten Israeli military aircraft have once again penetrated Lebanese airspace and flown over parts of the country in blatant violation of a UN Security Council resolution.


Six Israeli warplanes flew over the border village of Kfar Kila, located 96 kilometers (59 miles) south of the capital Beirut, at 9:50 a.m. (0650 GMT) on Sunday and conducted several unwarranted flights above areas in southern Lebanon, a statement released by the Lebanese military read.

The Israeli warplanes left the Lebanese airspace at 11:00 a.m. local time (0800 GMT) while flying over the southern border town of Alma al-Shaab.

Meanwhile, two Israeli fighters violated Lebanese airspace at 10:05 a.m. local time (0705 GMT), and flew over southern part of the country. The jets left at 11:45 a.m. local time (0845 GMT).

Two remote-controlled Israeli drones also entered the Lebanese airspace and carried out covert surveillance fights over the village of al-Naqoura, located 91 kilometers (57 miles) south of Beirut, and the southern village of Rmeish.

The aircraft flew over the southern areas of Lebanon at 2:10 p.m. local time (1110 GMT) and 4:00 p.m. local time (1300 GMT) on Sunday and left.

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 (UNIFIL) have repeatedly condemned the overflights, saying they are in clear violation of UN Resolution 1701 and the country's sovereignty.

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.

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