The army has also deployed an additional artillery unit to the eastern sector of the border, which includes the disputed Shebaa Farms district, scene of sporadic clashes since Israel's 2000 withdrawal from Lebanon, it added.

An army spokesman contacted by AFP declined to comment on the report.

Later Tuesday, army radio reported that Israeli Defence Minister Shaul Mofaz had ordered the country's military reserves to be partially mobilised, following reports that attacks were being prepared in the West Bank and Gaza.

An army spokesman said the closure of the Palestinian territories that was ordered for the Yom Kippur holiday has been extended until further notice.

Earlier, Israel's northern command chief General Benjamin Ganz told army radio that no reinforcements had been deployed or "special measures" taken at the Lebanese border.

Military sources told AFP that patrols had been stepped up and that soldiers were told to take strict security precautions.

Tensions were already high on Israel's northern border before Monday's fatal shooting following an Israeli air strike on an alleged Palestinian militant camp near Damascus, the first on Syrian territory in nearly three decades.

WAR.WIRE