Lebanon’s army chief urged his soldiers on Tuesday to stand fully ready at the southern border to face the “threats of the Israeli enemy”. Gen. Joseph Aoun also called on the troops to stay vigilant for the “good implementation” of U.N. resolution 1701 to “preserve stability” at the border with Israel. The “cessation of hostilities” resolution ended a destructive war in 2006 between Israel and Lebanese Hezbollah, the Iran-backed military and political movement. Under the resolution, the Lebanese army is responsible for security on its side of the border in a zone from which any other armed force, including Shi‘ite Hezbollah, is banned. The comments marked a rare acknowledgement by the military of the risk of a new conflict at a time of political crisis in Lebanon.

Source: Punch November 21, 2017 09:45 UTC