Fires caused by Israeli bombardment of several areas on the southern border continued to rage on Thursday afternoon, fueled by a drought and hot winds that have prevailed for several days.
Inhabitants of the village of Alma el-Chaab, not far from Naqoura in the caza of Tyre, called on the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), as well as the army and civil defense forces, to extinguish the fire, which had ravaged vast tracts of vineyards and olive groves.
The fires were caused by Israeli white phosphorus bombardments on Wednesday evening.
By Thursday morning, the flames were threatening to reach the houses, Jean Ghafari, head of Alma el-Chaab’s municipal council, told AFP, adding that army, UNIFIL and Civil Defense units, as well as village volunteers, were trying unsuccessfully to bring them under control. The army and UNIFIL have sent helicopters to extinguish the fire.
In a statement, caretaker Minister of Agriculture, Abbas Hajj Hassan, denounced the Israeli bombardments with white phosphorus “which caused the burning of thousands of old trees every day, including olive trees”. He announced that Lebanon intends to lodge a complaint against Israel.
On Wednesday evening, the Hebrew army carried out a series of violent bombardments around the villages of Dhaira, Alma el-Chaab, Tayr Harfa, Chamaa, Aïta el-Chaab, Rmeich and Aytaroun, where seven workers were evacuated after being surrounded by fire. A Civil Defense volunteer was also wounded in the leg by the explosion of an old Israeli mine, while putting out the fire in Labbouné.
Israeli military aircraft also flew over the area as far as the outskirts of Tyre.
Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri denounced Israel’s use of white phosphorus shells, which are “internationally prohibited,” and held “the international community responsible for the fires.”
