The Lebanese army on Thursday declared a state of "maximum alert" in response to Israeli threats to remove a tent "by force" erected near a border area in the south of the country.
The National News Agency (official) said that "Lebanese army units have placed their military vehicles and equipment in the southern Litani area in a state of high alert."
"The army took up combat positions in response to the Israeli enemy's threats to forcibly remove a tent that had been installed along the border line in the Bastara axis – the Shebaa Farms axis in southern Lebanon," it said.
She explained that the United Nations Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) operating in southern Lebanon had quoted Israel as saying that the tent was erected "inside the occupied area and must be removed by the concerned authorities," while the Lebanese army considers the tent to be in Lebanese territory.
The Lebanese news agency pointed out that "a wide deployment of the enemy army was recorded on the entire border line of the Shebaa farms, and dozens of vehicles and armored tanks were seen moving inside the military sites."
Meanwhile, UN peacekeepers are working on contacts between the two sides to "reduce tension," according to the national agency.
On an almost daily basis, Lebanon complains of Israeli violations of its airspace and territorial waters, and calls on the United Nations to intervene to stop these violations.