"Israel" kills one Lebanese civilian and wounds another
Source: AFP, 04-02-2008
One Lebanese man was killed and another wounded on Sunday when "Israeli" troops opened fire on them near the divided border village of Ghajar, medics and Lebanese officials told AFP.
"Two wounded men were brought in to the Marjayoun government hospital. One died of his injuries and the other is in critical condition" Dr Ali Hassan told AFP.
"The dead man was hit in the chest and the other man was hit in the stomach," the physician said, adding that the wounded man was later transferred to a hospital in Nabatiyeh because of the seriousness of his injury.
An AFP correspondent said that an ambulance took away the dead man, whose identity was not immediately known, to an unspecified destination.
One of the men was brought to Marjayoun by the Lebanese army and the other by Spanish troops serving with the UNIFIL, the correspondent said.
UNIFIL spokeswoman Yasmina Bouziane confirmed there had been a shooting incident and said the UN had begun an investigation.
"There was a shooting incident in the area of Ghajar. One Lebanese man was wounded and was evacuated by the UNIFIL to a hospital in Marjayoun where he was later declared dead and another individual was evacuated by the Lebanese army," she said.
"UNIFIL has launched an immediate investigation to ascertain the facts, looking into allegations of smuggling."
"UNIFIL Commander Major General Claudio Graziano is in contact with senior officers on both sides urging them to show maximum restraint," she added.
A Lebanese army spokesman said that the two men were unarmed at the time of the incident and were on the Lebanese side of the border.
But an "Israeli" army spokesman claimed that an "Israeli" patrol had come under fire from the Lebanese side of Ghajar.
"Shots were fired from Ghajar against an army force. The spokesman claimed troops returned fire and identified hitting one gunman."
"Israeli" security sources said the troops suffered no casualties and imposed a curfew on the "Israeli"-controlled side of the village.
They also claimed they suspected the incident involved drug traffickers rather than militants.
There has been hardly any violence on the "Israeli"-Lebanese border since the end of "Israel's" war against Hizbullah in the summer of 2006, after which the Lebanese army and an international peacekeeping force deployed along the border.
Ghajar, at the foot of Mount Hermon straddling the border between Lebanon and the "Israeli"-occupied Golan Heights, is perched on a cliff overlooking the precious Wazzani spring, which has been a source of continuous dispute between "Israel" and Lebanon.
It is inhabited mainly by Alawites, most of whom have obtained "Israeli" citizenship even though they consider themselves Syrian.
According to a UN-drawn "blue line" marking the border between "Israel" and Lebanon following the May 2000 withdrawal of "Israeli" troops, two-thirds of the village is on Lebanese soil, while the other third is part of the Golan which "Israel" seized from Syria in 1967 and unilaterally annexed in 1981.
One Lebanese man was killed and another wounded on Sunday when "Israeli" troops opened fire on them near the divided border village of Ghajar, medics and Lebanese officials told AFP.
"Two wounded men were brought in to the Marjayoun government hospital. One died of his injuries and the other is in critical condition" Dr Ali Hassan told AFP.
"The dead man was hit in the chest and the other man was hit in the stomach," the physician said, adding that the wounded man was later transferred to a hospital in Nabatiyeh because of the seriousness of his injury.
An AFP correspondent said that an ambulance took away the dead man, whose identity was not immediately known, to an unspecified destination.
One of the men was brought to Marjayoun by the Lebanese army and the other by Spanish troops serving with the UNIFIL, the correspondent said.
UNIFIL spokeswoman Yasmina Bouziane confirmed there had been a shooting incident and said the UN had begun an investigation.
"There was a shooting incident in the area of Ghajar. One Lebanese man was wounded and was evacuated by the UNIFIL to a hospital in Marjayoun where he was later declared dead and another individual was evacuated by the Lebanese army," she said.
"UNIFIL has launched an immediate investigation to ascertain the facts, looking into allegations of smuggling."
"UNIFIL Commander Major General Claudio Graziano is in contact with senior officers on both sides urging them to show maximum restraint," she added.
A Lebanese army spokesman said that the two men were unarmed at the time of the incident and were on the Lebanese side of the border.
But an "Israeli" army spokesman claimed that an "Israeli" patrol had come under fire from the Lebanese side of Ghajar.
"Shots were fired from Ghajar against an army force. The spokesman claimed troops returned fire and identified hitting one gunman."
"Israeli" security sources said the troops suffered no casualties and imposed a curfew on the "Israeli"-controlled side of the village.
They also claimed they suspected the incident involved drug traffickers rather than militants.
There has been hardly any violence on the "Israeli"-Lebanese border since the end of "Israel's" war against Hizbullah in the summer of 2006, after which the Lebanese army and an international peacekeeping force deployed along the border.
Ghajar, at the foot of Mount Hermon straddling the border between Lebanon and the "Israeli"-occupied Golan Heights, is perched on a cliff overlooking the precious Wazzani spring, which has been a source of continuous dispute between "Israel" and Lebanon.
It is inhabited mainly by Alawites, most of whom have obtained "Israeli" citizenship even though they consider themselves Syrian.
According to a UN-drawn "blue line" marking the border between "Israel" and Lebanon following the May 2000 withdrawal of "Israeli" troops, two-thirds of the village is on Lebanese soil, while the other third is part of the Golan which "Israel" seized from Syria in 1967 and unilaterally annexed in 1981.
Comments
- Related News
