"After two weeks of escalating diplomatic pressure, the "Israeli" government formally admitted Monday that civilian contractors from northern Galilee have been systematically stealing soil from the occupation zone."

"The disclosure, an abrupt reversal of earlier denials of involvement in the theft, came three days after the "Israeli" army toldd Unifil that tons of fertile earth had been removed from al-Marj just north of the border with "Israel".

Unifil said Monday that the theft appeared to have ended, with no activity in the area reported since Friday."

"The police in Kiryat Shemona have reportedly been ordered to investigate the removal of truckloads of earth.

The admission by the "Israeli" government came two weeks after The Daily Star broke the story, which initially prompted a flurry of denials from the Jewish state."

"After an official complaint by Speaker Nabih Berri last week to the United Nations, the European Union and the Arab League, "Israel's" Coordinator of Lebanese Affairs, Uri Lubrani, described the accusations as “nonsense.”

“I wonder where all that came from. We are used to such accusations as "Israel" bringing the Litani River to Lake Kinneret. Now it’s soil. Tomorrow they will say we’re stealing their air,” he said.

"Since "Israel's" sudden confession of guilt over stealing the soil, Mr. Lubrani has remained uncharacteristically silent, leaving his deputy, Reuven Ehrlich, to comment. “From an initial inquiry it transpires that these are private contractors who have been stealing quantities of topsoil,” said Mr. Ehrlich.

“In any event it isn’t a methodical plundering of Lebanese resources but the theft of some quantity of soil by local contractors,” he said.

"A statement by "Israel's" foreign ministry admitted that soil had been transported into "Israel" and that the army and police were looking into the matter."

"Foreign Ministry spokesman Aviv Shiron said an initial investigation showed that soil was taken from an area near the border for private purposes."

"There was no comment on whether the "Israeli" army was aware of the theft. However, bearing in mind that the "Israeli" army has a heavy presence in the area and man the border crossing through which the soil was transported, it is highly unlikely that they were unaware of what was going on. The soil is being used to construct a series of terraces just inside the "Israeli" border."

" The soil of the water-logged al-Marj is arguably the most fertile in south Lebanon having lain fallow for years due to its proximity to the "Israeli" border."