Beirut, Lebanon (AKI) - A state of maximum alert has been declared in the Palestinian camps in Lebanon near Sidon and Tyre after Israel in recent days intensified flights across the so-called Blue Line, the UN-drawn demarcation between Lebanon and Israel. The security measure was decided by the organisers of the Fatah party in the camps of Rashidiyye and Ein al-Hilwe camps near the two Southern Lebanon cities. Since the start of the week, there have been a number of violations of Lebanese airspace, and the United Nations has called on Israel to cease these violations and to respect Lebanon's independence.

"The Israeli aircraft did not just cross the borders but are also using sonic bombs, forcing the population in many locations to leave their homes and spend the night in air raid shelters," said Lebanese army sources. "There are also reported violations at sea: Israeli speed boats have been seen over recent days off the coast from the Rashidiyye camp" they added.

Lebanon's prime minister Fuad Siniora spoke by telephone with the US and French ambassadors on Thursday, the second such call in 24 hours, warning that "the Israeli provocation could turn southern Lebanon into a tinder box for the Middle East."

The UN secretary general's representative for Southern Lebanon, Geir O. Pedersen, on Wednesday deplored the air violations of the line of withdrawal, known as the Blue Line, and urged that they be halted immediately.

The five Israeli overflights recorded over Southern Lebanon on Wednesday "come after a relative tense period along the Blue Line, demonstrating again the fragility of the situation," Geir O. Pedersen said in a statement released in Beirut.

He stressed that all parties must "continue to exercise the utmost restraint in order to avoid any further deterioration" and reminded them that "one violation cannot justify another."