Media: Hezbollah smuggles hundreds of missiles from Syria into Lebanon

Hezbollah has managed to smuggle hundreds of short-range missiles from Syria into Lebanon in recent months, despite Israeli efforts to block such transfers, Israel’s public broadcaster Kan 11 writes, citing a senior US official.

Senior American officials who visited Israel last week were briefed on the alleged smuggling during meetings with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and senior Israeli security officials. According to Kan, Israeli representatives told their US counterparts that continued military strikes in Lebanon were necessary, calling the weapons transfers a violation of previous understandings.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have reportedly intercepted some of the missile shipments but were unable to prevent all of them from entering Lebanon, the broadcaster said.

A Western diplomat quoted by Kan described growing concern in Lebanon that a military confrontation with Israel is increasingly likely and may be unavoidable. The source said Israel seeks to fully disarm Hezbollah, while the Lebanese government has made only limited progress toward that goal.

The source added that the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) are working to bring all weapons under state control, particularly in the area south of the Litani River, but that many of their operations are not publicised.

By Sabina Mammadli