Israeli warplanes and drones flew over Beirut and other parts of Lebanon Sunday, in the latest of violation by Israel of Lebanese sovereignty and U.N. Security Council resolutions.
Security sources and witnesses said Israeli jets flew several times over the capital at medium altitude at around noon. Other aircraft, jets and drones, flew over south Lebanon, with warplanes also overflying areas north and east of Beirut.
Israeli aircraft regularly breach Lebanese sovereignty despite Security Council Resolution 1701 that ended a 34-day war between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006. The Israeli violations have gone unpunished since despite repeated Lebanese complaints to the world body.
Israel has also used Lebanese airspace to launch raids on targets in Syria.
The frequency of low flying warplanes over the capital has intensified in the last two weeks, making residents jittery as tensions run high in the region on the final days of President Donald Trump's administration.
can we normalize the sound of Israeli planes over lebanon? its so soothing to know i can die any second ????
— lae 10 (@tennleah) January 10, 2021
On Friday, the Lebanese army recorded an Israeli flight that lasted nearly six hours in the country’s south.
The Associated Press reported that a Twitter account that tracks aircraft movement in the Middle East, #Intel_Sky, has recorded dozens of Israeli jets flying over Lebanon, including mock raids, since the start of the year. #Intel_Sky called Sunday's flights "mock raids."
At one point this summer, the Lebanese army said Israel violated its airspace nearly 30 times in two days, flying reconnaissance drones and jets into Lebanese territory.
According to AP the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon says Israel enters Lebanese airspace on a daily basis in violation of U.N. resolutions and the country’s sovereignty.
With more than 10,000 peacekeepers from 45 contributing countries around the globe ?, @UNIFIL_ maintains a high operational capacity, carrying out numerous activities in support of peace and security in south Lebanon. ???#A4P pic.twitter.com/W7QDZVLIWW
— UN Peacekeeping (@UNPeacekeeping) January 5, 2021
Between June and October 2020, UNIFIL recorded a daily average of 12.63 airspace violations, totaling 61 hours and 51 minutes in flight time, a significant increase from the previous four months. Drones accounted for approximately 95% of the violations, UNIFIL said, according to AP.
This article has been adapted from its original source.
