Hizbullah Claims Responsibility for Border Blast that Wounded 2 Israeli Soldiers
Hizbullah claimed responsibility on Tuesday of a blast on the border between Lebanon and Israel that wounded two Israeli soldiers.
An explosive device targeted an Israeli patrol in the Shebaa Farms in southern Lebanon, said the party.
“The group of the martyr Hassan Ali Haidar carried out the operation today, Tuesday at 2:22 p.m.,” it added.
Media reports had earlier claimed that three Israeli troops were wounded in the incident, which al-Jazeera television said targeted an Israeli tank.
An Israel army spokeswoman confirmed that two troops were wounded when an explosive device was detonated during activities by the Israeli army near the Lebanese border.
The attack prompted a retaliation by Israel, which fired artillery shells at a number of positions in Shebaa, the nearby Kfarshouba Hills, and al-Saddaneh area.
Two Hizbullah posts were also shelled in southern Lebanon, said the Israeli army.
Al-Manar TV, which is affiliated with the party, later denied the shelling of Hizbullah positions.
It said that the party does not hold such posts in the area, which are only occupied by Lebanese army and United Nations peacekeeping forces.
The Lebanese army and the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon went on alert in the area following the unrest.
Israeli drones are hovering over the area of the blast that targeted an Israeli tank, al-Manar reported.
UNIFIL later issued a statement saying that “at approximately 14:30 p.m., the Israel Defense Forces confirmed that two IDF soldiers were wounded at an Israeli position in the Shebaa area as a result of an improvised explosive device.”
“The explosion was followed by IDF retaliatory artillery fire towards the general area of Kfarshouba hills,” it added.
“On receiving this information, UNIFIL contacted both parties urging maximum restraint and asking them to cooperate with UNIFIL in order to reduce tension and prevent escalation,” it continued.
UNIFIL is launching an investigation to determine the facts and circumstances of the incident
“This incident is a violation of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701. Such actions are in contravention of our objectives and efforts to reduce tensions and establish a stable and secure environment in southern Lebanon,” it concluded.
Later on Tuesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the Israeli soldiers “thwarted a terrorist attack in the north,” reported Ynet news agency.
"We've proven that we react with force to any attempt to harm us, whether it's in the south or another front," he said.
"We're witnessing the threats accumulating around us, these threats the whole world already knows about and is already dealing with some of them," he stressed.
These threats obligated Israel "to invest considerable amounts in security, and invest in communities near the border alongside that,” said Israel's Ynet news.
On Sunday, a Lebanese soldier was injured in a shooting from Israel near Kfarshouba, prompting a retaliatory shooting from the Lebanese military.
On September 20, an Israeli surveillance drone crashed in the town of Sarda in the Marjeyoun district.
Israel frequently flies drones over Lebanese territories in what Lebanese authorities say are violations of the country's sovereignty and United Nations Security Council resolution 1701.
Hizbullah military expert Hussein Haidar was killed as an Israeli drone remotely detonated a spy device he was dismantling in the southern coastal town of Adloun on September 5.
M.T.
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