Israeli and Lebanese forces exchanged fire at Israel's northern border on Tuesday. Three Lebanese soldiers and a photographer are reported killed and an Israeli battalion commander was killed and a platoon commander was critically wounded in the border skirmish.

Israeli reports claim Lebanese forces fired on Israeli troops stationed near the border, after which an Israeli tank reportedly fired back at Lebanese positions to the north.

The Lebanese army claims it began firing after warning Israeli soldiers not to uproot a tree, located on Lebanese land in the village of Adaysseh, that was blocking their view. 

"We fired in the air, and they responded by firing artillery shells," a Lebanese Army spokesman told the New York Times, speaking on departmental conditions of anonymity. 

The Israeli military said its soldiers were fired on inside Israeli territory, while forces were doing routine maintenance work in a gap between the so-called Blue Line, the internationally recognized border, and its security fence, reported the New York Times. The Israeli Defense Forces says it had coordinated with the United Nations peacekeeping force in advance for the tree removal procedure. 

In addition to the casualties, ten other Lebanese were reported wounded after the Israel Defense Forces fired two missiles and struck a post near the village, Lebanese witnesses and security sources said. A Lebanese armored personal carrier was also destroyed. 

The Lebanese Army spokesman made a statement confirming the Lebanese fired first. "The Lebanese Army opened fire first at Israeli soldiers who entered Lebanese territory...this constituted defense of our sovereignty and is an absolute right."

Lebanon's Prime Minister Saad Hariri immediately condemned the "violation of Lebanese sovereignty and demands ... the United Nations and the international community bear their responsibilities and pressure Israel to stop its aggression," a statement from his office said. 

President Michel Sleiman has vowed to "stand up to Israel's violation of Resolution 1701, whatever the price".

"The president denounces the new Israeli violation of Resolution 1701, which includes ... the bombing of a Lebanese army checkpoint and attacks on Lebanese property," a statement released by Sleiman's office said.

The Israeli foreign ministry responded in force stating: "Israel sees the government of Lebanon as responsible for this grave incident and warns of the consequences in the event that disturbances of this kind continue." 

United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, known as UNIFIL, has a 12,000-member peacekeeping force stationed on the border.

''UNIFIL peacekeepers are in the area and are trying to ascertain the circumstances of the incident and any possible casualties,'' said UNIFIL spokesman Neeraj Singh. ''Our immediate priority at this time is to restore calm in the area.''

An AFP correspondent in Adaysseh said soldiers from the Indonesian contingent serving with the UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon tried to no avail to calm the situation before the clashes erupted, according to the news agency.

The Israeli army is concerned the clash was planned in advance, given the presence of various media persons on the Lebanese side.

Tensions at the border have been mounting following reports that Hezbollah has been stockpiling weapons in preparation for a new war.

Less than a month ago the Israeli military published photos of Hezbollah's massive military buildup in southern Lebanon, near the border with Israel, according to Israel's Ynet News, including aerial photos of village where, according to the army, Hezbollah has been accumulating various weapons.

When the photos were released, Colonel Ronen Merli, an Israeli military commander at the Lebanese border, said given Hezbollah's preparations, "an incident may take place today or in a year. I'm prepared for this to happen by surprise without being told about it." 

"We're operating in various ways in order to thwart any incident, and if one does take place, we'll know how to handle it," he said. 

"The enemy's leadership should know that we too have a target bank," Hezbollah later retorted.

"They know well that all their threats shall go down in the face of the surprises prepared by the resistance," a senior figure warned.

The Alternative Information Center

4th August 2010

http://www.alternativenews.org/english/index.php/topics/news/2786-clashe...