ISRAELI warplanes raided southern Lebanon overnight, after the militia of the Shiite group Hezbollah attacked Israeli positions in the disputed Shebaa Farms border area, police and the Israeli military said. Police said Israeli aircraft flew five sorties over the area, striking near the towns of Kfarshouba, Hibbariyeh and Khiam. Israeli artillery also pounded the area with 155 mm guns, with more than 100 rounds striking in less than an hour, the police said.A young woman
An Israeli army spokeswoman confirmed that "our aircraft attacked targets from which our positions were fired on." Later, senior army spokesman Avital Leibovich said: "It was a serious provocation from Hezbollah, which is tolerated by the Lebanese government. "Any attempt from Hezbollah to link this attack with Wednesday's incident is illogical and out of proportion," the spokeswoman added.
Friday's attack came two days after a 15-year-old Lebanese shepherd, Ibrahim Rahil, was killed by Israeli gunfire in the area. Ms Leibovich accused Hezbollah of "using innocent civilians to gather information and launch attacks," saying the dead boy had approached an Israeli position. The army is on a heightened state of alert in the volatile northern border region, she added.
The Israel raids came less than an hour after Hezbollah fired on an Israeli position at Roueissat al-Aalam. The army spokeswoman said one person was lightly wounded in the attack, in which Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said some 500 rockets pounded the tiny Roueissat al-Aalam position in 45 minutes.
"We chose this post to punish it" for the killing of Lebanese teenager Ibrahim Rahil, Nasrallah told a news conference carried by Al-Jazeera television.
On Wednesday, the Hezbollah chief had threatened reprisals after Rahil's body was found near the border. Four Hezbollah fighters were killed and 11 Israeli soldiers wounded in fierce clashes in the Shebaa Farms sector last November.
Israel captured the Shebaa Farms from Syria during the 1967 Middle East war. The mountainous area is now claimed by Lebanon, with the backing of Damascus.
The area is frequently a flashpoint as Hezbollah probes Israeli defenses.
On Friday, Lebanese Foreign Minister Fawzi Salloukh met with representatives of UN Security Council member countries to inform them of the "new Israeli aggression." He said Lebanon "hoped for a firm condemnation by the UN of the Israeli acts of aggression that threaten the stability" of the border region.