05/08/2010 In the wake of the Israeli attack on Lebanon’s sovereignty, a Lebanese foreign ministry diplomatic campaign was launched to clarify the Lebanese position and resilience to face any aggression on the borders with occupied Palestine.
Arab and foreign ambassadors lashed out at Israel’s aggression on the Lebanese Army (LAF) as a “flagrant infringement” and “blatant violation” of UN Security Council Resolution 1701. They also called upon their governments to support Lebanon and work on implementing resolution 1701.
Army Commander General Jean Qahwaji asserted while inspecting the army units deployed in the southern town of Odeisseh that the Lebanese army will be on alert against any Israeli infiltration. "Israel is responsible for the clash, where its patrol unit infiltrated Lebanese land ignoring army and UNIFIL protests and violating resolution 1701," Qahwaji said.
"Your capabilities have proven to this deceitful enemy that any assault on our people and land will not pass without a price and any assault on an inch of our nation is, according to our principles, tantamount to an attack against the whole nation," he warned.
This comes as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu threatened Lebanon backed by a US adoption of the Israeli position which held Lebanon responsible for Tuesday's clash.
SOLDIERS OPENED FIRE UNDER MILITARY ORDER
A tripartite meeting was held Wednesday night between representatives of the Lebanese army and the Israeli occupation army at the Naqoura crossing under UNIFIL command.
As-Safir newspaper reported that Lebanon’s representative major general Abdul Rahman Chehaitli said that Israel which violated the blue line is responsible for the skirmishes. “The Lebanese position is crystal clear. We are committed to Resolution 1701 and to our reservation to some areas and points,” Chehaitli indicated. “LAF encounter wasn’t an individual accident but an army command. The soldiers were ordered to open fire,” he said.
The Israeli military establishment believes the incident was orchestrated by a single, radical Lebanese army officer, who was not acting on orders from higher-ups, according to defense correspondents.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Ali Shami called for “international condemnation of any [Israeli] aggression, along with punitive measures in the UN Security Council,” the National News Agency (NNA) reported. Israel violates UN Security Council Resolution 1701on a daily basis, Shami said, adding, “Israeli troops crossed the technical line [on Tuesday] into an area that they are not permitted to enter without UNIFIL’s permission.”
UN special coordinator for Lebanon Michael Williams, who attended the meeting for the first time, conveyed to the representatives UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon’s wish for “calming the situation, preserving security and stability in the region, avoiding the violation of the blue line, and respecting resolution 1701.” He also warned that if this situation would prevail, it could lead to the breakdown of the whole situation.
HEZBOLLAHIZATION OF LAF IDEOLOGY?
Israeli political and security officials expressed fear from the evolution of “Lebanese military ideology”. Yediot Ahronot newspaper said this situation was confusing because “the Lebanese army role while it was limited to making ceremonies, it seems that they are backing Hezbollah with officers and soldiers are taught on Israel’s animosity.”
The Lebanese constitution considers Israel an enemy entity and therefore the military doctrine is in line with the constitution. The Lebanese army had between 1948 and the 1970s engaged in several heroic confrontations with the Israeli occupation army. In 2006, Israeli warplanes conducted raids on Lebanese army posts as far as Tripoli in north Lebanon and killed and injured several soldiers.
An Israeli analyst warned that Lebanon’s military is reaching a point where they are seeing Hezbollah as complete honorable partner in defending the Lebanese sovereignty. “They are acting as a backing weapon for Hezbollah,” he said.
Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon, in an interview with public radio, warned of the danger of Hezbollah gaining influence over Lebanon's army. "There is a danger of the Hezbollahization of the Lebanese army, if the army begins to behave like Hezbollah," he said. “We will have to treat [the army] in a completely different manner,” he added.
Hasan Hijazi contributed to this report
River to Sea
Uprooted Palestinian
No comments:
Post a Comment