Suleiman Tasks Mansour with Filing Complaint with U.N. over Israeli Overflights
Israeli warplanes overflew Beirut, the eastern town of Baalbek that borders Syria, and southern Lebanon at low altitude Sunday, prompting a call for a complaint with the United Nations.
President Michel Suleiman tasked Caretaker Foreign Minister Adnan Mansour with filing an urgent complaint with the U.N. over the overflights “which covered all Lebanese regions, including the capital Beirut,” said a terse statement.
Mansour condemned the violation of Lebanese airspace, confirming in remarks to the National News Agency that he would file the complaint over “the dangerous attacks carried by the Israeli army.”
The surge in overflights since January comes amid repeated warnings by Israel that the Syrian regime might transfer chemical weapons to Hizbullah.
Two air raids in Syria by Israeli warplanes last month destroyed missiles apparently destined for Hizbullah. The attacks have sparked fears that the party could hit back.
The United Nations has called on Israel to halt the increased military air patrols, U.N. spokesman Martin Nesirky said in May.
He added that the overflights are a violation of Lebanese sovereignty and of Security Council resolution 1701 which allowed for a ceasefire that ended Israel's war with Hizbullah in 2006.
"We are aware of the concerns raised by the Lebanese government in this regard. The U.N. interim force has lodged firm protests with the Israeli Defense Force on this matter asking them to cease the overflights," Nesirky said.
Suleiman has previously condemned the Israeli violations, calling them a continuation of the Jewish state’s policy of intimidation.
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