FOLLOW-UP ON FEBRUARY 7 ISRAEL-LEBANON BORDER

S E C R E T TEL AVIV 000620 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/27/2017 TAGS: PREL PBTS KPKO LE IS SUBJECT: FOLLOW-UP ON FEBRUARY 7 ISRAEL-LEBANON BORDER INCIDENT REF: A. TEL AVIV 508 ¶B. STATE 18502 Classified By: Ambassador Richard H. Jones, Reason 1.4 (b) (d) ¶1. (S) The Ambassador, accompanied by PolCouns and Assistant Air Attache, called on MOD Pol-Mil Director Amos Gilad February 26. Noting that he had received authorization from Washington to share the imagery on which we had based our earlier demarche (reftels) on the February 7 border incident with Lebanon, the Ambassador gave Gilad a copy of the imagery with the reported IDF violation of the Blue Line marked. ¶2. (S) Referring to separate discussions between the IDF and the DAO, Gilad said he understood that DAO was convinced that there should be a "correction to the data." The Ambassador responded that the issue continued to be under discussion in Washington. He added that the point of our demarche was to avoid future incidents and promote improved contacts between the IDF and UNIFIL and the LAF. Gilad agreed, but added that the real question was what would be the future of Lebanon. ¶3. (S) In a subsequent conversation with PolCouns, MFA Deputy Director General for the UN and International Organizations Ronni Leshno Yaar expressed great concern at the U.S. demarche to the MOD on the border incident. PolCouns reiterated the Ambassador's comment to Gilad that the purpose of the demarche had been to promote closer Israeli cooperation with UNIFIL and the LAF, not to point fingers at Israel. Yaar, saying he was speaking for Foreign Minister Livni, declared that the MFA was "shocked" that the U.S. had accused the IDF of violating the Blue Line with Lebanon, an accusation which Yaar claimed equated Israel with Hizballah since the IDF had only been responding to Hizballah's placing of IED's on the Blue Line two days before the border incident. Yaar asserted that the imagery on which the demarche was based was inaccurate and that the IDF had not crossed the Blue Line. Yaar stressed that the MFA expected the Embassy to retract the demarche since it was based on false analysis. Noting that Gilad's response had been much milder, PolCouns said Washington agencies were looking into the accuracy of the imagery. Yaar said he would discuss it further with Gilad as well. ********************************************* ******************** Visit Embassy Tel Aviv's Classified Website: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/telaviv You can also access this site through the State Department's Classified SIPRNET website. ********************************************* ******************** JONES