A Lebanese security source said that Israel had crossed the Blue Line into Lebanese territory on Tuesday and seized a displaced Syrian shepherd.

The source told Xinhua that the 30-year-old Syrian shepherd was herding his cattle, when an Israeli commando unit advanced about 100 meters inside Lebanese territory and "kidnapped" him.

The shepherd, identified as Mohammed Badawi, was from Syria's Beit Jen region. After fleeing from his war-torn country, Badawi took shelter in Shebaa Farms about a year ago and worked as shepherd ever since.

His relatives called on the United Nations Disengagement Force (UNFOD) observing the ceasefire between Israel and Syria in the Golan Heights to secure his release, as the kidnapping occurred in the UNDOF area of operations.

The Blue Line is a border demarcation between Israel and Lebanon published by the United Nations in 2000 for the purposes of determining whether Israel had fully withdrawn from Lebanon.