Israeli jets have bombarded an area on the Lebanon-Syria border, reportedly hitting a Hezbollah position, a Lebanese security source and a Syrian NGO said,
“Two Israeli raids hit a Hezbollah target on the border of Lebanon and Syria,” the source told AFP news agency. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the target was a Hezbollah “missile base”.
Lebanon’s state news agency also confirmed the airstrikes, however, there was no immediate confirmation from Lebanese security officials, and the Israeli military declined comment.
Al Jazeera’s Mysa Khalaf, reporting from Beirut, said that the National News agency reporter confirmed that two air raids took place near Nabi Sheet, a remote village in the eastern Bekaa Valley. The agency did not say what was targeted in Monday’s attack.
The porous border is frequently used by fighters and smugglers to move people and weapons between Lebanon and Syria. The Shia armed group and polititical movement Hezbollah has a strong presence in the Bekaa area.
A Lebanese army spokesman said he had no indication of any airstrikes in the area, but that authorities were investigating the reports.
Residents in Nabi Sheet reported hearing several explosions late Monday, but the nature of the blasts was unclear.
Jaafar al-Musawi, head of Nabi Sheet Municipality, told Lebanon’s Al-Jadeed TV there was no airstrike on the town. “We heard warplanes followed by explosions, it could be along the border with Syria,” he said.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights activist group said Israeli warplanes bombed a rocket launcher for Hezbollah fighters near the villages of Janta and Yahfoufa along the border. It was not known if the strikes hit inside Lebanese or Syrian territory, the Observatory added.
Over the past year, Israel has carried out several airstrikes inside Syria to halt suspected shipments of advanced missiles, including Russian-made anti-aircraft missiles and guided missiles from Iran, from reaching Hezbollah.
Israel has never confirmed the airstrikes.
(Al Jazeera And AP)
