The Lebanese army has fired Israeli reconnaissance drones in the south of the country. A total of three drones have penetrated into the Lebanese airspace, the army said in a statement, as the state news agency NNA reported.
Two unmanned aircraft flew over an army post. According to residents, the drones have been seen over the area since the morning. The Israeli army said it had heard Lebanese shots fired at an air space in which army drones had been deployed. These would have completed their mission. There were no reported damages.
The renewed incident threatens to aggravate the already tense relations between the two countries. Following the crash of a drone and the explosion of a second one over the Lebanese capital Beirut last Sunday, Hezbollah, backed by Israeli archenemy Iran, bombed the neighbor. Lebanon's President Michel Aoun spoke of an "Israeli aggression" that amounted to a "declaration of war".
Lebanese President Michel Aoun said on Tuesday that the incident justified his country's military response. "This allows us to exercise our right to defend our sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity," he said at a meeting with UN envoy Jan Kubis.
