Israel keeps mum on Lebanese firing at drone

Israel is refusing to comment on claims from Beirut that the Lebanese military fired at an unmanned Israeli aircraft on Saturday, forcing the drone to leave the Lebanese air space.

An Israeli official who spoke to Xinhua on condition of anonymity declined to discuss the Lebanese action, but did try to put Beirut's claims in a broader context.

"Israel has no hostile intentions whatsoever regarding Lebanon, and the key to peace is the full implementation of UN Security Council resolutions that call on Hezbollah to be disarmed. This is the obligation of the Lebanese government and the international community," said the official.

The Lebanese military said that the unmanned plane was flying at medium altitude over southern Lebanon, not far beyond the border between the two countries.

THE HEZBOLLAH LINK

Israel has been flying spy planes for years over the Lebanese territory. In the past, its aircraft flew regularly as far north as Beirut and beyond, but these days its focus is on southern Lebanon, the stronghold of Hezbollah, which Israel dubs an Iranian proxy and blacklists as a terrorist group.

While Hezbollah is increasingly becoming part and parcel of the political scene in Lebanon, its military is still fully operational, despite Israel's summer campaign against it in 2006. Indeed, Israel says Hezbollah is now a stronger fighting force than it was on the eve of the warfare.

"Israel believes it is justified because Hezbollah is a terrorist organization," said Joshua Landis, director of the Center for Middle East Studies at the University of Oklahoma.

However, this could also work against Israel. Israeli flyovers could be used by Hezbollah and other resistance organizations as a justification for an escalation of tension, said Landis. The Lebanese government also sees the Israeli flyovers as a provocative act, he added.

Hezbollah's TV station al-Manar has been giving considerable coverage to the incident. It quoted the chief of staff of the Lebanese army, Jean Qahwaji, as calling on his soldiers to be on high alert ahead of a possible Israeli attack.

This should be done "to handle what the Israeli enemy is scheming against the homeland, and to continue the battle against its violations - in the air, water, and land - with all the tools at our disposal," Qahwaji was quoted as saying.

The attack coincided with the launch of celebrations for Lebanon's 66th anniversary day, and the country's desire to show that it is a truly independent nation might have been the reason it chose to respond with fire to this particular flight, given that Lebanon accuses Israel of breaching its airspace virtually every day.

THE LAW

Whether Israel feels justified in monitoring Hezbollah or not, it is in prima facie breach of international law by sending aircraft into the Lebanese airspace, according to Yuval Shany, a professor of law at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, who has particular expertise in the rules of war.

"Lebanon is a sovereign country and you cannot invade its airspace unless you are the subject of an armed attack. It's also contrary to UN Security Council Resolution 1701," said Shany, while stressing that it makes no difference whether the planes are unmanned drones or F-16 fighter jets.

That resolution also forms part of the basis of Israeli claims against Hezbollah. Israeli officials have insisted that Hezbollah should be disarmed. However, Shany said that one party breaching a resolution does not justify the other party following suit.

Israel could claim that its flyovers are countermeasures to Hezbollah's violations of UN resolutions, but Shany said he did not think that argument would stand in court.

However, he added that the Israeli violation is "technical" and would not be considered as a major invasion of a sovereign country.

ISRAELI ACTIONS IN LEBANON

In recent months, there have been several arrests of Lebanese citizens accused of spying for Israel. The latest incident took place last Wednesday.

A 54-year-old teacher from Tibnin in southern Lebanon reportedly admitted to spying. He said he had stopped doing so since receiving warnings from Israel after Lebanon broke up several other alleged spy rings about seven months ago, according to The Daily Star Lebanon newspaper.

Israel remains silent about such allegations and court cases. However, it is widely thought that Israel's Mossad secret intelligence agency uses locals to pass information back to its headquarters in Tel Aviv.

Israel's argument is that Hezbollah continues to rearm following the 2006 war, despite the UN's regular calls for an end to its weaponry flow. Israel also argues that Hezbollah is being used by Iran as a proxy and will launch an attack against Israel if instructed to do so by Tehran.

As long as that threat exists, Israel will continue to use whatever means it has at its disposal, whether legal or otherwise, to keep in check Hezbollah and other militant organizations operating on the Lebanese soil.

In turn, that leaves the Lebanese government in a difficult position, caught between Israel and Hezbollah, particularly as Hezbollah gains more political power.

The escalation in tensions over the last few months means that the offer of peace talks with Beirut by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu seems less likely to be accepted than ever.

Source: Xinhua