| UN's Annan: Israel,
Lebanon must respect border UNITED NATIONS -
UN Secretary General Kofi Annan asked Israel Monday to respect Lebanese air space by
ending military overflights.
"The secretary general is concerned about today's Israeli overflights into Lebanese
airspace," spokesman Fred Eckhard said in a statement.
"The situation in Lebanon and in the wider region is fragile. T
he secretary general reiterates his call on the Israeli authorities to end these
overflights. He urges all parties to fully respect the Blue Line and reminds them that one
violation of the Blue Line cannot justify another," the spokesman said in a
statement.
The United Nations drew the Blue Line to demarcate the volatile border after Israel's
troop withdrawal from southern Lebanon in 2000 following 22 years of occupation.
Hezbollah said on April 11 that its guerrillas had flown a pilotless drone over northern
Israel, provoking overflights of south Lebanon by Israeli warplanes.
Earlier Monday, the Israeli army fired eight artillery shells into southern Lebanon near
the disputed border region of the Shebaa Farms, causing damage but no casualties,
according to Lebanese police.
An Israeli military source in Jerusalem told AFP that soldiers had "by mistake"
fired a shell that fell onto Lebanese territory, adding the Israeli army had informed UN
peacekeepers of the incident. |
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