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Hezbollah infiltrated Israel, setting up two armed posts within its northern border, revealed Kan News who documented details from a Defence and Foreign Affairs Committee meeting.
The militarised tents, manned by three-eight Hezbollah members, have been stationed beyond the Blue Line for two weeks, with Israel seeking their removal through United Nations (UN) peacekeepers. Although the IDF currently do not view these tents as an immediate threat to Israel’s security, they maintain that the tents surmount to a violation of Israeli sovereignty, and although diplomacy is the favoured means of removal, has commented that force may be used if alternative options fail.
The Blue Line, recognised by the UN, serves as an informal border as both Lebanon and Israel continue to engage in territorial disputes. The name derives from the blue barrels which delineate the boundary. The particular area in dispute, the Mount Dov and Shebaa Farms region, is claimed by Lebanon, Syria and Israel. The area is protected by UN Security Council Resolution 1701 which calls for a restriction of combat units south of the Litani River, bar the official Lebanese military and the peacekeeping United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).
Hezbollah has violated the Resolution previously, stationing dozens of observation posts outside of Lebanon’s side of the Blue Line, along Israel’s northern border. Israel’s northern border fence, which serves as its physical barrier and foremost defence against Hezbollah belligerence – separates the disputed area from Israel’s civilian nucleus by several metres.
This is the second time Hezbollah has infiltrated Israel’s territory in recent months. In March, a Hezbollah insurgent detonated a bomb in Meggido, over 80 kilometres from the border. To further protect themselves from Hezbollah, Israel is constructing a new border wall with Lebanon, with 130 kilometres of concrete already complete. Over £3 billion will be spent to defend the 22 Israeli villages located south of Lebanon.
