Israeli war planes fly over Lebanon

Israeli fighter jets have once again violated the Lebanese airspace, conducting a number of overflights over the eastern parts of the country.

A statement released by the Lebanese army said Friday that Israeli war planes entered Lebanon’s territory over the southern border town of Naqoura the previous day and flew over Riyaq city in Baalbek, a Press TV correspondent reported.

The Israeli planes left the Lebanese airspace on Friday after nearly nine hours of surveillance operations.

Lebanon’s military often reports airspace violations by Israeli aircraft but does not usually open fire on them. The Israeli military says the flights serve surveillance purposes.

The airspace violations, which are reported on an almost daily basis, contravene United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701, which ended the Israeli war on Lebanon in 2006 and calls on Tel Aviv to respect Lebanon’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

According to evidence submitted to the UN by the Lebanese government, Israel has breached the provisions of the resolution on more than 7,000 occasions by violating Lebanon’s airspace, territorial waters and border.