Israel strikes near border

2006-07-31 07:14

Beirut - Israeli warplanes struck suspected guerrilla positions in eastern Lebanon near the border with Syria early on Monday, security officials said.

Israeli jets carried out two raids at approximately 01:30 local time (22:30) near the village of Yanta, about five kilometers from the Syrian border, the officials said.

Israel announced a 48-hour halt in aerial attacks on Sunday around midnight local time (21:00 GMT on Sunday) that was believed to be effective immediately. But early on Monday an Israeli army spokesman said the pause in overflights began at 02:00 local time (23:00 GMT on Sunday).

The army said that the temporary cessation of aerial activity would allow the opening of corridors for 24 hours for Lebanese civilians who want to leave south Lebanon for the north and would maintain land, sea and air corridors for humanitarian assistance.

Israeli officials earlier left open the possibility that Israel might hit targets to stop imminent attacks on Israel, and that the suspension could last less than 48 hours if the military completes its inquiry into Sunday's incident in Qana before then.

International uproar

It was not known what was hit in the Yanta area, where radical Syrian-backed Palestinian factions maintain bases in the mountains abutting the Syrian border.

The Israeli aerial suspension came hours after an Israeli airstrike killed at least 56 civilians, most of them women and children in the southern Lebanese town of Qana, sparking an international uproar and fuelling demands for a cease-fire.

Shortly before the suspension, Israeli warplanes attacked for the second time in the last few days a road between Lebanon and Syria just outside the Lebanese border post at Masnaa, severing the main artery between the two capitals.

The Israeli military confirmed a highway attack near Syria, but said it knew of no others.

- AP