Lebanon arrests US man who entered illegally from Israel

An American has been arrested after illegally entering Lebanon across the border with Israel, the Lebanese army said on Thursday, a rare incident between the two countries still technically at war.

"Following extensive search operations, an Intelligence Directorate (security service) patrol found American citizen Colin Emery hiding in Tyre and arrested him," a statement from the military said.

It added that Emery, who had entered Lebanon on Tuesday, would be questioned under the supervision of a judge. 

A military official told AFP that Lebanese authorities were in contact with the United Nations peacekeeping mission UNIFIL over the incident.

Lebanon and Israel are separated by the so-called "blue line", a demarcation line drawn by the UN to verify Israel's withdrawal from southern Lebanon in 2000.

Incursions across the heavily guarded frontier are rare. In 2014, an Arab Israeli said to be suffering from psychiatric issues crossed into Lebanon before being repatriated by the International Committee of the Red Cross.

The Israeli military occasionally arrests shepherds around the disputed Shebaa Farms area. 

Apart from a few incidents, the border has remained calm since a 2006 war between Israel and Lebanese militia group Hizballah, which killed 1,200 in Lebanon and 160 in Israel.

Israel is currently building a wall along the 130 kilometre (80 mile) frontier to block Hizballah attempts to infiltrate.

The Israeli army said in December it had blown up a cross-border tunnel dug by Hizballah, one of four it had uncovered - and pledged to destroy - in the preceding weeks.