BEIRUT (National Times) Beirut has received “assurances” that Israel will not target the country’s only international airport, Lebanon’s transport minister told AFP, but said those fell short of guarantees.
Since September 23, Israel has launched an intense air campaign mainly targeting Hezbollah strongholds in Lebanon including Beirut’s southern suburbs, adjacent to the airport.
On Monday, the United States warned Israel not to attack the Beirut airport or the roads leading to it, after repeated Israeli strikes near the facility.
Lebanon “seeks to keep its public airport, sea ports and land crossings — chief among them the Rafik Hariri International Airport — functional,” Minister of Public Works and Transport Ali Hamieh told AFP.
“Ongoing international calls have given us a sort of assurance” the airport will be spared Israeli strikes, he said, however adding that “there is a big difference between assurances and guarantees”.
Hamieh denied Israeli accusations that Hezbollah was using the airport and border crossings to smuggle weapons.
The Beirut airport “is subject to Lebanese laws and to the scrutiny of various relevant departments and security agencies”, he said.
“Any military aircraft or plane carrying weapons must be approved by the Lebanese army” and be licensed to do so by his ministry.
He said his ministry was “fully coordinating” with the army and relevant state agencies to keep land, air and sea ports safe because “if these ports are closed, it means we’re under siege”.
On Friday, the Israeli army said its fighter jets struck Hezbollah targets near the Masnaa border crossing, damaging the main road between Lebanon and Syria and preventing vehicles from getting through.
Dozens are still crossing the border on foot.
Lebanon’s government said more than 400,000 people had fled to Syria to escape Israeli bombardment, with tens of thousands crossing from Masnaa before the main road was bombed.
“Closing off this crossing has created a big problem,” Hamieh said, adding that the government was “making the necessary calls to get it back up and running again”.
The Masnaa crossing is Lebanon’s main land gateway to the rest of the region.
“The Masnaa crossing is a major crossing… for imports and exports, and a vital crossing for Lebanese farmers and industrialists for land exports,” he said.
