Lebanese Minister of Public Works Ali Hamiyeh assured that the tunnel in the southern border town of Ras Naqoura is a property of the Lebanese State and must be restored.
“Al-Naqoura tunnel is a property owned by the Lebanese State, but it is under Israeli occupation,” Hamiyeh said in interview with Al-Mayaden Channel on Monday.
He noted that the “maritime borders are drawn from the land borders, specifically from the point of Ras Al-Naqoura,” insisting that that “the Lebanese territories must be restored,” because it is a “sovereign project, including the lands of Al-Naqoura tunnel.”
“The railway project in Lebanon is geopolitical and strategic,” the minister said, noting that “there are new strategic roads,” and “the Lebanese railways must be linked to them.”
Al-Naqoura tunnel is a border point between Lebanon and occupied Palestine.
Earlier on Saturday, the Hezbollah minister declared from Ras Al-Naqoura that “We will recover the last occupied inch of the Ras Al-Bayada tunnel in Al-Naqoura.”
Hamiyeh said he added the topic of the “railway tunnel” to the land and sea border disputes between Lebanon and the Israeli occupation.
Elsewhere in Monday’s interview, the Lebanese minister noted that “the offers that have been made concerning the reconstruction of Beirut Port are studies, and not reconstruction projects”, calling on all companies to participate in efforts reconstruct the port rocked by a huge blast that killed hundreds and injured other thousands on August 8, 2020.
Source: Al-Mayadeen and Al-Manar English Website
