Cheif of Staff on Lebanon border
A Lebanese television station affiliated with the Hezbollah terror group aired video on Thursday, showing the visit to the Israel-Lebanon border earlier this week, of IDF chief Herzi Halevi surrounded troops. Al-Manar said the Israeli commander visited an area of the border across from the village of Hula situated just two kilometers (just over a mile) inside Lebanon.
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The reporter was among other Hezbollah operatives present on the border with Israel on a regular basis and reporting on high-ranking officials visiting there
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The visit of Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi on the northern border, filmed from inside Lebanon
"We must assume that any Israeli action on the border is filmed by Hezbollah," Tal Beeri, a researcher at the Alma Education and Research Center said. "We are aware of the group's high alert when we stop along the border fence to ourselves film inside Lebanon.
Beeri said he did not believe Hezbollah had advanced knowledge of Halevi's arrival and that the camera operator may not have known who he was filming, only that it was a high-level visit. "His job is to film whatever is happening and Hezbollah later views the material and makes the identification. We believe they have sniper teams and anti-tank batteries in the area, which can be assembled quickly."
Al-Manar also broadcast a video showing an IDF force launching smoke grenades to move rioters away from the border near Mount Dov, while the military was operating heavy machinery there and Lebanese army forces were also present in the area.
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IDF fires smoke grenades at Lebanese crossing into Israeli territory on the border with Lebanon
(Photo: Screenshot)
Over the past few weeks, there have been a number of provocations including Lebanese breaching the border into Israeli territory. The IDF responded with smoke grenades including during a visit of a Lebanese member of parliament traveling with a group of reporters, who denied crossing the frontier.
Sources in the military told Ynet that the provocations on the northern border are becoming more emboldened and include launching firecrackers into Israel but the government instructed the IDF not to respond.
Lebanon's Foreign Minister, Abdallah Bou Habib began talks recently. with foreign ministers from countries currently serving on the United Nations Security Council in order to begin a process for setting the country’s land border with Israel.