BICOM

Lebanese protestors assembled in large numbers on Israel’s border on Saturday and a small number crossed over the border.

Israeli soldiers took action to control the crowd and ensure none of the protestors reached the Israeli security fence and entered Israeli territory.

The demonstration was organised after a Lebanese media report that Israel has installed surveillance devices near the Lebanese village of Meiss Ej Jabal as part of its monitoring of the border. The crowd gathered on the border near Kibbutz Manara but none of the protestors were armed. After the group crossed over the border Israeli soldiers fired tear gas to disperse the crowd and force them back into Lebanon.

The incident follows a recent exchange of threats between Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and Israel’s Defence Minister. Nasrallah warned that Israel “should count to a million before declaring war” and said that if Israel attacks Lebanon, Hezbollah will target Haifa’s ammonia plant and Dimona’s nuclear reactor.

Israel’s Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman responded saying that Nasrallah should continue “hiding in an underground bunker”.

Last week, IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot told the Knesset’s Foreign Affairs and Defence Committee that Hezbollah was gaining operational experience in Syria fighting alongside Syrian forces, and Iranian personnel within a Russian command structure. But he concluded that Hezbollah was suffering from a “financial and morale crisis,” due to its large deployment and heavy losses in the war.

Lebanese and Syrian media reported last week said that Israel’s Air Force fired on Hezbollah targets near Syria’s capital Damascus. Israeli officials did not comment and Israel has remained firmly on the sidelines of the Syrian civil war. Senior Israeli officials have previously admitted to periodically hitting targets in Syria, in order to prevent the transfer of advanced weapons to Hezbollah in Lebanon for potential use against Israel.