One of the buoys
Photo: Guy Gibli
Navy shoots at buoys from Lebanon that drifted into Israeli waters
Amid rising tensions between Beirut and Jerusalem, Israeli troops open fire at two large buoys spotted being carried by the waves into Israeli waters to rule out the possibility they contained explosives.
The Israeli Navy and the police's naval unit opened fire Thursday at two large buoys that were carried by the waves from Lebanese waters to the coast of Nahariya to rule out the possibility they contained explosives.
The incident began in the afternoon hours, when the Navy spotted one of the foreign objects making its way from north to south and crossing the naval border line near Rosh Hanikra.
The troops on the Navy's Dvora-class patrol boat then opened fire at the buoys.
One of the buoys (Photo: Guy Gibli)
Later, one of the buoys drifted towards Nahariya and reached as far as several hundred meters from the breakwater at the city's marina.
Residents said soldiers kept shooting at the buoy and later got closer to examine it.
Similar activity took place off Betset Beach, where the second buoy drifted to.
During the past week, Israel and Lebanon have exchanged threats and condemnation over a border wall being constructed by Israel, a tender issued by Beirut for oil and gas exploration in disputed waters and arms flows to Lebanon's Iran-backed Hezbollah group.
