After an exchange of shelling between Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah militants, Israel submitted a complaint to the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), on Saturday, calling for UN action.
The Lebanese government considered the Israeli shelling as hostile acts and a flagrant violation of Lebanese sovereignty.
In a letter to the UN, the Israeli ambassador to the United States and the UN, Gilad Erdan, said that Israel considers the Lebanese government responsible for everything that happens on its territory, and that Hezbollah’s “terrorist” attacks would lead to massive havoc and destruction for Lebanon.
As a response, the Lebanese government sent a letter to the UN Security Council, condemning the Israeli attacks on its territory, and considered them “hostile acts and a flagrant violation of Lebanese sovereignty and Security Council Resolution 1701.”
Calm has been restored in the Israeli-Lebanese borders after two days of fire exchange started after Israeli artillery shelling targeted open areas on the outskirts of the villages of Kfar Shouba and Al-Habariya, and caused fires in the area’s forests.
The Iran-backed militia of Hezbollah announced that it had bombed the vicinity of Israeli sites in the occupied Shebaa Farms with dozens of missiles. The group said that its bombing came in response to the Israeli air raids that targeted open areas in the south of the country on Thursday.
The Lebanese army announced that it had arrested four people who had fired the rockets on the Israeli cities.
As expected, the US Department of State has condemned the Hezbollah missiles saying that these actions threaten Lebanon’s stability and sovereignty. The US State Department said that Washington is in contact with Israeli and Lebanese officials and the Lebanese army.
Moreover, the UN Special Coordinator in Lebanon, Ioana Frontka, expressed concerns over the exchange of fire between Lebanon and Israel in the past few days, calling for maximum restraint to avoid further escalation, and to maintain security and stability.
Furthermore, the Deputy Spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General, Farhan Haq, warned that the possibility of a miscalculation could lead to serious consequences. “Maximum restraint is required to prevent further escalation,” he said.
