2023-10-26 11:56:05
Border villages in southern Lebanon witnessed fires on Wednesday night and Thursday dawn, after Israel fired a number of flares and phosphorus bombs.
The people of the town of Alma al-Shaab in the Tire district appealed to the United Nations forces (UNIFIL) and the security forces and civil defense in the border areas of southern Lebanon to intervene and work to extinguish the fires that broke out as a result of the Israeli bombing.
In the skies of southern Lebanon, over the villages of the border strip, starting from the town of Shebaa to Naqoura, residents see continuous flights of Israeli military aircraft at low altitude, in light of the ongoing tensions with Hezbollah and the Palestinian factions loyal to it.
The mayor of Alma Al-Shaab, Jean Ghafri, told Sky News Arabia: “The fire started at dawn on Thursday and is still continuing until this moment, and it has not been controlled.”
Ghafri added: “We appealed to the relevant UNIFIL forces, the Lebanese Army, and the Civil Defense in the Union of Tire Municipalities for assistance, and indeed UNIFIL forces began using helicopters to extinguish the fires, but the fire reached inside the town and affected some of the homes there.”
The local official explained: “The fire extends over a large area, and has consumed most of the fruit trees, starting from the borders of the border town of Al-Dahira to the borders of Naqoura, and destroyed a large area of these trees.”
Ghafri said: “About 70 percent of our town’s population was displaced, and today the remaining young people came to help. We fear the expansion of the fire, which has reached the borders of the towns of Naqoura and Labouneh.”
Eyewitnesses from Alma al-Shaab residents reported to Sky News Arabia that “the fire has affected large areas in the town, and has so far devoured large areas of vine trees and forests, and has even reached their homes, which they abandoned to flee the conflict.”
Sources confirmed that the fire destroyed large areas of forests in the border town of Blida in the district of Bint Jbeil, Aita al-Shaab and Naqoura.
Jan, a resident of the town of Alma al-Shaab, told Sky News Arabia: “It seems that starting fires has an Israeli tactical interest, in order to prevent Hezbollah from taking shelter inside the bush.”
A health emergency plan in Lebanon in preparation for any escalation on the border
The Israeli army deliberately drops phosphorus bombs on the woods located on the outskirts of the Lebanese border towns, starting fires that are difficult to put out for days.
It is noteworthy that phosphorus bombs dropped from the air are not internationally prohibited, and their use in military operations is not prohibited in accordance with international humanitarian law, as long as they are not used against places inhabited by civilians.
On Wednesday evening, a surface-to-air missile fired from southern Lebanon was intercepted, for the first time since the confrontations that broke out following the Hamas attack on October 7.
Clashes renewed on the Lebanese-Israeli border, after Hezbollah targeted Israeli technical and spy devices with guided missiles, which required a response that ignited the southern front along the border strip.
According to security sources on the Sky News Arabia website, “It can be said that the Israeli bombing is expanding, as its area has expanded to exceed a depth of 5 kilometers from the Blue Line,” separating Lebanon and Israel.
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