IDF condemns soldier pictured hitting statue of Jesus

The Israeli army has said that an image circulating on social media that shows a soldier in south Lebanon hitting a statue of Jesus Christ is authentic and depicts one of its troops.

The image appears to show an Israeli soldier using a sledgehammer to strike the head of a statue of a crucified Jesus that had fallen off of a cross.

The Israel army said it viewed the incident with "great severity", adding that the "soldier's conduct is wholly inconsistent with the values expected of its troops", in a post to its official X account on Monday.

The incident is being investigated by the Northern Command and is currently being "addressed through the chain of command", the military added, saying "appropriate measures will be taken against those involved in accordance with the findings."

Media reports indicated that the statue was in the Christian village of Debl, near the border with Israel.

The Debl municipality told AFP that the statue was located in the village, but could not confirm whether it had been damaged.

The Israel army said that it is working with the community to "restore the statue to its place".

Gideon Sarr, Israel's Minister of Foreign Affairs, called the incident "disgraceful" and said that Israel was a country that "respects the different religions and their sacred symbols".

"The damaging of a Christian religious symbol by an IDF soldier in southern Lebanon is grave and disgraceful," he wrote on X.

"I commend the IDF for its statement, for condemning the incident, and for conducting an investigation into the matter.

"I'm confident that the necessary strict measures will be taken against whoever carried out this ugly act.

"This shameful action is completely contrary to our values. Israel is a country that respects the different religions and their sacred symbols, and upholds tolerance and respect among faiths.

"We apologise for this incident and to every Christian whose feelings were hurt."

The IDF today warned residents in southern Lebanon not to move south of a specified line of villages or approach areas near the Litani River, saying its forces remain deployed in the area during a ceasefire due to what it described as continued Hezbollah activity.

In a statement, military spokesperson Avichay Adraee also urged civilians not to return to multiple border villages until further notice, citing security risks.

Lebanese President says talks aim to end occupation

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said today that planned talks with Israel aim to end "hostilities" and the Israeli occupation in the south, as he named ex-ambassador Simon Karam to lead a delegation.

"The choice to negotiate aims to stop hostilities, end the Israeli occupation of southern regions and deploy the (Lebanese) army all the way to the internationally recognised southern borders" with Israel, Mr Aoun said in a statement.

Mr Aoun named former Lebanese ambassador to Washington Karam to head the negotiations, and said the talks will be "separate from any other negotiations", in reference to US-Iran diplomacy to end the wider Middle East war.

Hezbollallah responsible for peacekeeper's death - UNIFIL

A spokesperson for UNIFIL says initial investigations have found that that Hezbollah was responsible for the death of a peacekeeper in South Lebanon last Saturday.

Speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland, Dany Gafary said that a UNIFIL patrol was clearing explosive devices from a road in South Lebanon when they came under attack.

One French peacekeeper was killed and three more were injured, two severely.

Mr Gafary said UNIFIL has called on the Lebanese government to also investigate the attack.

In addition, they call for all parties to stay committed to the ceasefire, he said.

"UNIFIL calls on the Government of Lebanon to initiate an investigation to identify and hold the perpetrators accountable for this incident that that could be described as a crime of war," he said.

He said that since Friday UNIFIL has not observed any projectiles being fired from Lebanon to Israel but has seen IDF violations.

Peacekeepers have also observed IDF movement across the blue line, he added.

He said that all UNIFIL troops, including Irish peacekeepers, who are based close to the blue line are working with a lot of security challenges.