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TYRE: Italian troops began landing in Lebanon on Saturday in the first major reinforcement to the United Nations mission monitoring a ceasefire between Israel and the Hezbollah militia.
Five inflatable dinghies each transporting seven soldiers arrived on the shores of this southern coastal city and were greeted by troops from the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) as two helicopters hovered overhead.
Lt Federico Mariani, a spokesman for the Italian troops, said that the soldiers would carry out a reconnaissance mission before the full contingent of some 800 soldiers is transported ashore from five naval vessels anchored off the coast.—AFP
