Israeli moves near Lebanese borders: Ghusein; efforts continue to eliminate the mines

Armored Israeli moves were observed yesterday at the Southern Lebanese borders point at al-Tahweh al-Abaseyah axis, while the Israeli warplanes were flying in the airspace of the Shebaa farms until the Lebanese borders with Israel.

Lebanese security sources said that 10 Meir Kava Israeli tanks moved at the western side of al-Tahweh position until al-Mafer Wadi, while an Israeli on foot patrol composed of 8 soldiers was seen carrying out a mopping up operation by machine guns at the southern and eastern outskirts of al-Ghajar town.

The Israeli forces introduced armored reinforcements into inside an observation point near al-Wazzani spring and an Israeli spy plane flew in the airspace of the liberated area of al-Arqoub, along the border line of the occupied Shebaa farm.

Meantime, the director of the United Arab Emirates UAE solidarity project for dismantling landmines from South Lebanon, Ibrahim Ghusein, said that so far some one million square meters of the Lebanese lands have been cleared from the Israeli mines.

In a speech he delivered yesterday on the occasion of graduating 28 Lebanese who underwent intensive courses in landmine field clearance, Ghusein indicated that the already cleared out lands were handed out to their owners for investment. He said that so far 4008 land mines were dismantled as well as hundreds of non- exploded missiles and shells left by the Israeli forces after their pullout from South Lebanon.