The survey, released Thursday, shows how widespread this presence was, with at least 22,000 overflights recorded in the last 15 years alone. These numbers have made warplanes a steady soundtrack to Lebanese life and the ever-present threat of violence part of the country’s collective psychology. Produced by a new organization, AirPressure.info, research shows that Israeli planes have occupied the Lebanese skies for a total of eight and a half of the last 15 years. A few of the invasions are short, with many lasting an average of four hours and 35 minutes. And most include the most technically advanced fighter jets or surveillance aircraft in the world for which Lebanon’s basic ground defenses offer nothing to do. Some of the flight paths followed by jets and drones. Photo: AirPressure.info Flight maps of jets and drones reveal a bowl of spaghetti with loops in most parts of Lebanon. The flights are concentrated in the south, where they seem to follow defined routes. But Beirut is also a frequent destination, as are areas north of the capital and closer to the border with Syria. Lawrence Abu Hamdan, the author of the study, which is the most comprehensive of its kind, said studies have shown that regular exposure to fighter jets overflights affected those living below. Air.Pressure.info has compiled 11 peer-reviewed scientific journals detailing the acute physiological effects of aircraft noise, with symptoms ranging from hypertension to reduced blood circulation and psychosomatic pain. Perhaps less comprehensible is the psychological impact of alien warplanes dominating the skies over a civilian population. They often fly at low altitudes which cause alarm and panic. “While in Lebanon, each of these acts is felt as a moment that passes for a while and no resident can hear jets in the same way or at the same time,” said Abu Hamdan. “What I intend to present is an accumulated event, a widespread crime that has taken place over the last 15 years. “But in reality this should be seen as an atmosphere of violence. It takes its toll over time, so it can be ignored, but it should not be ignored anymore. “Why should a population live under mass indiscriminate surveillance and live under a hostile sky; to the extent that it is integrated into everyday life?” The figures come from 243 letters sent by Lebanon to the UN Security Council, often updated with information provided by the UN Interim Force in Lebanon, a peacekeeping mission and the Lebanese army. In addition, for the past two years, researchers have been hired to explore the skies and capture images of Israeli aircraft. “These videos record the threatening sounds and images of Israeli military aircraft, as well as the conversation between civilians and residents talking about what is happening to them,” said Abu Hamdan. Israel has long argued that its invasions of Lebanon are necessary to obtain information from Hezbollah, the militant political bloc that dominates most political decisions in the country and goes beyond the national army. It has also used Lebanese airspace to bomb targets in Syria linked to Iran, a key supporter of Hezbollah. The Israeli air force has some of the most powerful surveillance capabilities in the world, and fears that civilian communications are regularly intercepted by Israeli surveillance aircraft have been regularly expressed. Lebanon and Israel have been technically at war since the end of decades of civil war and Israel’s withdrawal from southern Lebanon in 2000. The latest wave of violence was a month-long war between Hezbollah and Israel in the summer of 2006.
