French UN anti-aircraft batteries have taken "preparatory steps" to respond to Israeli jets violating Lebanese airspace. "The anti-aircraft unit of the (French) battalion took initial preparatory steps to respond to these actions," Milos Strugar, spokesman for the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) told AFP on Friday.
He said "UNIFIL observed and reported 14 Israeli air violations this morning, on November 17, 2006, and 11 of these violations occurred in the area of operation of the French battalion with UNIFIL."
UNIFIL Force Commander General Alain Pellegrini "strongly protested to the Israeli authorities and asked them to cease these actions which are unacceptable and in violation of Resolution 1701," the spokesman said.
According to Strugar, the French battalion took action to respond "in accordance with UNIFIL rules of engagements and UN Security Council Resolution 1701."
