'Naqoura Tunnel' a New Conflict Issue between Lebanon and Israel

An Israeli crane erects a wall near border, as seen from Lebanon, near Lebanon's Naqoura, March 6, 2018. (Reuters)
An Israeli crane erects a wall near border, as seen from Lebanon, near Lebanon's Naqoura, March 6, 2018. (Reuters)
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'Naqoura Tunnel' a New Conflict Issue between Lebanon and Israel

An Israeli crane erects a wall near border, as seen from Lebanon, near Lebanon's Naqoura, March 6, 2018. (Reuters)
An Israeli crane erects a wall near border, as seen from Lebanon, near Lebanon's Naqoura, March 6, 2018. (Reuters)

A new point of border conflict was added on Monday to the Lebanese-Israeli file after a pro-Hezbollah caretaker minister included the so-called “railway tunnel” established by the English army in the forties between Lebanon and Palestine, to the lingering border dispute between the two countries.

Caretaker Minister of Public Works and Transport Ali Hamieh included the issue under the title “the Occupied Naqoura tunnel”, to two other conflict border points of Shebaa Farms and Kfarshuba Hills, and to the disputed maritime areas where border demarcation is being negotiated under the UN auspices and US mediation.

“Our sovereign rights lie in our decision to restore every inch of the occupied tunnel, besides to our decision to restore our land and maritime borders too,” said Hamieh during a visit to Naqoura where the tunnel lies.

The tunnel was built by the English army between 1942 and 1944 to build a railway for rapid movement between Lebanon and Palestine.

It was closed in 1948 with the declaration of the state of Israel.

According to field sources in south Lebanon, “Israel closed the tunnel with a cement wall and placed concrete barriers inside it within a geographical spot located inside Lebanese territory."

According to the former head of the negotiating delegation on the border with Israel, retired Major General Abdul Rahman Shehaitli, the tunnel lies in Lebanese territories and was closed by Israel, which is occupying the area where the tunnel is located, a long time ago.

The Israeli side "is encroaching on Lebanese territory at this point,” he told Asharq Al-Awsat in remarks.

The tunnel is located directly on the coast of Naqoura (the farthest south of Lebanon), while the Israeli forces installed a gate to the east of it that "encroaches on Lebanese territory for a distance of about 30 meters as well," he added.

“There is no dispute over the point, but Israel is now refusing to acknowledge it or allow the Lebanese to reach it. The point is still a pile of stones since 1923. The Israeli army installed the gate in front of it deep inside Lebanese territory in the year 2000 after the liberation of southern Lebanon,” Shehaitli noted.

During his visit to the tunnel, Hamieh said: “We are on Lebanese soil that is under Lebanese sovereignty...A study was conducted on the railway tunnel, which was built during the Second World War in 1942." He added that "we are now in the process of preparing terms of reference for launching international bids for the establishment of resorts and facilities.”

“We will not give up an inch,” of the land or maritime borders, Hamieh said, “We also want our rights and borders in the tunnel until the last square meter.”

Anti-Hezbollah parliamentary sources said the issue adds a new dispute to the lingering border conflict between Lebanon and Israel.



Sudanese Army Recaptures Positions from RSF in El Fasher

Thick smoke rises over El Fasher following clashes between army forces and the RSF (DPA)
Thick smoke rises over El Fasher following clashes between army forces and the RSF (DPA)
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Sudanese Army Recaptures Positions from RSF in El Fasher

Thick smoke rises over El Fasher following clashes between army forces and the RSF (DPA)
Thick smoke rises over El Fasher following clashes between army forces and the RSF (DPA)

The Sudanese army carried out a surprise military operation in the early hours of Saturday in El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur state, regaining several positions in the city’s far southwest that it had previously abandoned to advancing Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

Military sources reported that calm returned to El Fasher after intense clashes on Friday between the army and RSF fighters, who attempted a major offensive to deepen their hold inside the city. In a statement, the army said its Sixth Infantry Division successfully repelled a fresh RSF attack, inflicting heavy losses in personnel and equipment, and restored control over all frontline areas.

RSF militants had infiltrated southern neighborhoods, seizing the Central Security Reserve headquarters and the Shalla prison. According to army sources, these forces were pushed back through ground combat supported by extensive drone strikes, forcing them to retreat to their original positions. The sources confirmed there were no significant breakthroughs or territorial gains by the RSF following the operation.

In a statement on Saturday, Prime Minister Kamel Idris expressed “deep anger, pain, and responsibility” over the worsening humanitarian disaster in El Fasher. He condemned the “suffocating and inhumane siege imposed by the RSF militia,” describing it as “one of the most brutal cases of collective extortion and systematic starvation in recent history.”

Idris vowed that the government would not stand idly by in the face of this “atrocious” crime and pledged to use all political, diplomatic, and humanitarian means to break the siege and ensure urgent aid reaches civilians trapped in El Fasher amid widespread starvation and international silence.

He called on United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, along with international and humanitarian organizations, to act immediately to pressure the militia to open humanitarian corridors and end the use of starvation as a weapon against civilians.

The prime minister highlighted the RSF’s refusal to comply with UN Security Council Resolution 2736, which demands lifting the siege on El Fasher, and their rejection of UN calls for a humanitarian ceasefire. He held the militia responsible for obstructing aid and accountable for the ongoing starvation and terror inflicted on civilians.

Idris warned against silence over these crimes, including the killing of civilians fleeing the siege and bombardments. He also cited the systematic destruction of hospitals by RSF suicide drone and strategic attacks, threatening the lives of millions of innocent civilians.

“What is happening in El Fasher is a major crime committed in full view and hearing of the world,” he said, urging the international community to move beyond lukewarm statements to real action and pressure on those besieging, starving, and attacking civilians.

The RSF continues to attempt to seize the city and its army base, the last stronghold of government forces across all Darfur states. Military sources said defenders repelled the assault and inflicted heavy casualties on the attackers.

The RSF has maintained a tight siege on El Fasher since May 2024, blocking all roads and supply routes and preventing humanitarian aid from entering, resulting in hundreds of civilian deaths from starvation and medical shortages.