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UNIFIL Vows to Stay in Lebanon Despite Several 'Deliberate' Israeli Attacks

UNIFIL Vows to Stay in Lebanon Despite Several 'Deliberate' Israeli Attacks
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UNIFIL Vows to Stay in Lebanon Despite Several 'Deliberate' Israeli Attacks

UNIFIL Vows to Stay in Lebanon Despite Several 'Deliberate' Israeli Attacks

A UNIFIL peacekeeping mission spokesperson on Friday denounced several direct, deliberate attacks by Israeli forces in recent days and said it had found evidence of the possible use of white phosphorous near one of its bases.
"We need to stay, they asked us to move," Reuters quoted UNIFIL spokesperson Andrea Tenenti as saying by video link from Beirut.
"The devastation and destruction of many villages along the Blue Line, and even beyond, is shocking," he said, referring to a UN-mapped line separating Lebanon from Israel and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.
Asked about the downing of a drone near its ship off the Lebanese coast on Thursday, he said: "The drone was coming from the south but circling around the ship and getting very, very close, a few meters away from the ship."
According to Tenenti, an investigation several months ago had detected "a trace of the possible use of white phosphorous" by the Israeli army close to a UNIFIL base. He added that the UN Security Council was aware of the case.
White phosphorus munitions are not banned as a chemical weapon and their use - usually to make smoke screens, mark targets or burn buildings - by the Israeli military is documented.
However, since they can cause serious burns and start fires, international conventions prohibit their use against military targets located among civilians.

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Ex-Tunisian Minister Sentenced to Three Years in Prison

Former Environment Minister Riadh Mouakher (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Former Environment Minister Riadh Mouakher (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Ex-Tunisian Minister Sentenced to Three Years in Prison

Former Environment Minister Riadh Mouakher (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Former Environment Minister Riadh Mouakher (Asharq Al-Awsat)

The Criminal Chamber specialized in financial corruption cases at the Court of First Instance of Tunis, sentenced on Friday former Environment Minister Riadh Mouakher to three years in prison, the Tunisian official news agency, TAP, reported.
The ruling is part of a corruption case related to breaches in a transaction carried out by the former minister for the purchase of several vehicles.
Investigation showed that the tender conditions were allegedly manipulated in favor of one particulate supplier.
In addition to Mouakher, the Chamber condemned a civil protection executive, seconded to the Environment Ministry, to two years in prison.
The two defendants are found guilty of abusing their functions to obtain an undue advantage, and therefore causing harm to the administration and contravening the regulations in force.
On Thursday, the Criminal Chamber specialized in corruption cases at the Tunis Court of First Instance sentenced a security officer to three years in prison and four others to four years in prison on charges of abusing their functions to obtain an undue advantage and harm others.
The five security officers had formed a group for the purpose of attacking property and exploiting a public employee.
According to documents related to the case, surveillance activities revealed that the five defendants, who work at a central department, were involved in seizing private funds, giving night jobs to some department agents, and transferring the profits to their personal accounts.
Their case was first examined by the Financial Chamber, which decided to sentence the five security guards to prison.
The case was later referred to the Criminal Chamber that examines financial corruption cases. The chamber had earlier kept the five defendants at liberty, before issuing late on Thursday the prison sentences.