Israel denies building a wall inside Lebanese despite the UN findings. Photo: Al Manar
Israel denies building a wall inside Lebanese despite the UN findings. Photo: Al Manar
Israel denies building a wall inside Lebanese despite the UN findings. Photo: Al Manar
Israel denies building a wall inside Lebanese despite the UN findings. Photo: Al Manar

Israel accused of occupying more Lebanese territory with walls north of Blue Line


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Israel has occupied an additional 4,000 square metres of southern Lebanese territory by constructing a section of wall north of the UN-delineated Blue Line, the UN peacekeeping mission said on Friday.

The breach comes nearly a year after a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hezbollah ended months of cross-border fighting.

The UN's peacekeeping force in Lebanon, Unifil, said its observers surveyed last month “a concrete T-wall erected by the [Israeli military] south-west of Yaroun", a village in Nabatieh governorate.

Israel also occupies five other points inside Lebanese territory, which the Israeli military says it is controlling for strategic reasons following the end of last year’s war between Israel and Hezbollah.

Under the terms of a November 2024 ceasefire deal, Hezbollah was to halt attacks on Israel and Israel was to withdraw from Lebanese territory.

Unifil said it had informed the Israeli military of its findings and requested that Israel remove the structure, but the mission did not clarify whether Israel had responded.

“The survey confirmed that the wall crossed the Blue Line, rendering more than 4,000 square metres of Lebanese territory inaccessible to the Lebanese people,” Unifil said.

The peacekeeping force said Israel had additionally crossed the Blue Line into south-eastern Yaroun in the process of constructing another section of wall, but it did not specify how far the wall crossed into Lebanese territory.

“The wall is part of a broader plan whose construction began in 2022,” the Israeli military told AFP. “Since the start of the war, and as part of lessons learnt from it, the [military] has been advancing a series of measures, including reinforcing the physical barrier along the northern border.”

“It should be emphasised that the wall does not cross the Blue Line,” it added.

However, images circulating online appear to show a fortified wall extending northwards beyond the Blue Line, demarcated by the UN after Israel withdrew from southern Lebanon in 2000, near the Israeli town of Avivim.

Unifil said the new construction, along with Israel’s continued military presence at several posts inside Lebanon, violates Security Council Resolution 1701, which ended the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah.

The UN force says the Israeli military has continued to fortify the five positions held by its troops inside Lebanese territory over the past year since the ceasefire.

Israel says it will not pull back unless Hezbollah is disarmed.

Earlier this week Lebanese media reported that Israel was building a section of wall encroaching into Lebanese territory between the villages of Aitaroun and Maroun Al Rass, a few kilometres away from Yaroun.

Unifil representative Dany Gaafary told The National at the time that, while Israel was building a wall in that area, it was clearly within Israeli territory.

Quick pearls of wisdom

Focus on gratitude: And do so deeply, he says. “Think of one to three things a day that you’re grateful for. It needs to be specific, too, don’t just say ‘air.’ Really think about it. If you’re grateful for, say, what your parents have done for you, that will motivate you to do more for the world.”

Know how to fight: Shetty married his wife, Radhi, three years ago (he met her in a meditation class before he went off and became a monk). He says they’ve had to learn to respect each other’s “fighting styles” – he’s a talk it-out-immediately person, while she needs space to think. “When you’re having an argument, remember, it’s not you against each other. It’s both of you against the problem. When you win, they lose. If you’re on a team you have to win together.” 

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There are thousands to choose from, with the five biggest providers BlackRock’s iShares range, Vanguard, State Street Global Advisors SPDR ETFs, Deutsche Bank AWM X-trackers and Invesco PowerShares.

Breast cancer in men: the facts

1) Breast cancer is men is rare but can develop rapidly. It usually occurs in those over the ages of 60, but can occasionally affect younger men.

2) Symptoms can include a lump, discharge, swollen glands or a rash. 

3) People with a history of cancer in the family can be more susceptible. 

4) Treatments include surgery and chemotherapy but early diagnosis is the key. 

5) Anyone concerned is urged to contact their doctor

 

Jeff Buckley: From Hallelujah To The Last Goodbye
By Dave Lory with Jim Irvin

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The biog

Title: General Practitioner with a speciality in cardiology

Previous jobs: Worked in well-known hospitals Jaslok and Breach Candy in Mumbai, India

Education: Medical degree from the Government Medical College in Nagpur

How it all began: opened his first clinic in Ajman in 1993

Family: a 90-year-old mother, wife and two daughters

Remembers a time when medicines from India were purchased per kilo

Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026

1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years

If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.

2. E-invoicing in the UAE

Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption. 

3. More tax audits

Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks. 

4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime

Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.

5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit

There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.

6. Further transfer pricing enforcement

Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes. 

7. Limited time periods for audits

Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion. 

8. Pillar 2 implementation 

Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.

9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services

Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations. 

10. Substance and CbC reporting focus

Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity. 

Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer

German intelligence warnings
  • 2002: "Hezbollah supporters feared becoming a target of security services because of the effects of [9/11] ... discussions on Hezbollah policy moved from mosques into smaller circles in private homes." Supporters in Germany: 800
  • 2013: "Financial and logistical support from Germany for Hezbollah in Lebanon supports the armed struggle against Israel ... Hezbollah supporters in Germany hold back from actions that would gain publicity." Supporters in Germany: 950
  • 2023: "It must be reckoned with that Hezbollah will continue to plan terrorist actions outside the Middle East against Israel or Israeli interests." Supporters in Germany: 1,250 

Source: Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution

The five pillars of Islam

1. Fasting

2. Prayer

3. Hajj

4. Shahada

5. Zakat 

The story in numbers

18

This is how many recognised sects Lebanon is home to, along with about four million citizens

450,000

More than this many Palestinian refugees are registered with UNRWA in Lebanon, with about 45 per cent of them living in the country’s 12 refugee camps

1.5 million

There are just under 1 million Syrian refugees registered with the UN, although the government puts the figure upwards of 1.5m

73

The percentage of stateless people in Lebanon, who are not of Palestinian origin, born to a Lebanese mother, according to a 2012-2013 study by human rights organisation Frontiers Ruwad Association

18,000

The number of marriages recorded between Lebanese women and foreigners between the years 1995 and 2008, according to a 2009 study backed by the UN Development Programme

77,400

The number of people believed to be affected by the current nationality law, according to the 2009 UN study

4,926

This is how many Lebanese-Palestinian households there were in Lebanon in 2016, according to a census by the Lebanese-Palestinian dialogue committee

Updated: November 14, 2025, 4:31 PM