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Israel to launch another military exercise near Lebanon border

March 2, 2018 at 3:07 pm

Israeli soldiers are seen as they conduct a military drill [Nedal Eshtayah/Anadolu Agency]

Israel is preparing to conduct a series of large-scale military exercises near its northern border with Lebanon.

Military training will begin on Sunday and last four days, Channel 7 reported today. The last such exercises concluded ten days ago.

“The manoeuvre is included in the army’s 2018 exercise schedule and is designed to maintain preparedness for any emergency,” the military spokesman said.

The drills came in the wake of the increased tensions in the northern area following the recent clashes between the Israeli air force and the Syrian military earlier this month, in addition to the ongoing diplomatic dispute between Israel and Lebanon over their maritime border after a natural gas reserve was discovered.

The Israeli occupation launched a war on Lebanon in the summer of 2006, which resulted in the deaths of more than 1,200 Lebanese, mostly civilians, and about 163 Israelis, mostly soldiers.

The Israeli army intensified its training after criticism that it was not prepared for the war and the losses suffered during its recent wars with the Palestinian and Lebanese resistance.

Read: Three Israeli warplanes breach Lebanese airspace