Explosions rock Israeli position in Lebanon border area  

JERUSALEM (AFP) – A series of explosions were reported near an Israeli military base in the contested Shebaa Farms district on the border between Syria, Lebanon and Israel.

At least six blasts, probably caused by rocket fire from southern Lebanon, rocked the volatile area, an army spokeswoman said Friday.

Lebanese police said earlier that Israeli troops had opened fire with heavy machine guns on southern Lebanon amid fresh tension along the border.

The shooting hit the village of Kfarshouba near the Israeli-occupied Shebaa Farms district, damaging a house, police said.

The violence followed stern warnings from Israel that it held the Lebanese government responsible for maintaining the peace, following two blast in 24 hours on the Israeli side of the border.

“Israel holds Lebanon responsible for what happens on its border,” Defence Minister Shaul Mofaz told public radio, adding his country had no interest in escalating tension along its northern border.

On Thursday, an explosion was heard near an Israeli army position in the foothills of Mount Hermon where the borders of Lebanon, Syria, and Israel meet.

The army said the blast resulted from two rockets fired from Lebanon.

Late Wednesday, a rocket fired from southern Lebanon caused damage to the industrial area of the Israeli town of Shlomi, five kilometres (three miles) from the border, during independence day celebrations.

Seized from Syria in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war along with the rest of the Golan Heights, the Shebaa Farms area is now claimed by Lebanon with Syrian blessing.