May 3, 2013 - 15:23 AMT
Israeli warplanes violate Lebanon’s airspace - report

Eight Israeli warplanes violated Lebanon’s airspace in a span of 14 hours, flying over large swaths of the country, Army officials announced Friday, May 3, according to The Daily Star.

Although Israel sends reconnaissance jets and warplanes over Lebanon on almost a regular basis, the air traffic in the last 24 hours has been unusually high.

“At 7:10 pm Thursday, two Israeli warplanes violated Lebanese airspace entering above the sea west of Sidon and flying over all Lebanese areas as they conducted aerial maneuvers,” an announcement from the Army’s general directorate said.

The planes left Lebanon's airspace approximately four hours later above Naqqoura.

Ten minutes before the departure of the first jet group, another two warplanes entered the airspace above the sea west of Jounieh and conducted aerial maneuvers across the country.

Those jets returned to Israel just after midnight above the southern village of Alma Shaab.

At 12:35 am another sortie of two warplanes entered Lebanese airspace above the sea near Beirut, after which they conducted aerial maneuvers over the country before leaving at 3:15 am, according to the Army.

At 6 am two more warplanes violated the country’s airspace from above the sea near Beirut and flew over all Lebanese regions and left at 8:50 am above the southern village of Rmeish, the Army said.