Lebanon: 'Israel gave UN no proof of border tunnels'

Israeli machinery (top) can be seen on 4 December 2018 operating next to the concrete border wall between Israel and Lebanon after Israel announced it launched an operation to ‘destroy Hezbollah tunnels’ in the area [Mahmoud Zayyat/AFP/Getty Images]

Israel provided no evidence of cross-border attack tunnels in a meeting with UN peacekeepers on today, Lebanon’s Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri said.

Nabih Berri, Speaker of the parliament of Lebanon

Nabih Berri, Speaker of the parliament in Lebanon [File photo]

The Israeli military launched an operation yesterday on its side of the border to “expose and thwart” tunnels into its territory, which it said originated from Lebanon.

Israel accused Lebanon’s Hezbollah movement of digging across the common frontier, saying they did not function yet but posed “an imminent threat”.

There was no comment from Hezbollah.

“The Israelis did not present any information,” at the meeting with the Lebanese army and the UNIFIL peacekeeping force, a statement from Berri’s office said, adding that geographic coordinates had been demanded but not received.

“This [Israeli accusation] is not based on any real facts at all,” Ali Bazzi, a lawmaker from Berri’s parliamentary bloc cited the speaker as saying after a meeting.

Mechanical diggers, drills and other heavy machinery were seen from south Lebanon throughout yesterday, working on the Israeli side of the heavily-guarded border. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said late yesterday that the operation would continue for as long as necessary.

Is the Israeli military operation along the border with Lebanon for real?

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