Israeli strike kills three Lebanese soldiers, army says

BEIRUT – An Israeli strike on a vehicle in south Lebanon killed three soldiers, Beirut’s military said on June 6, days after the two countries announced a conditional truce following talks in the United States.

“A number of military personnel, including an officer, were martyred in a barbaric Israeli raid targeting a military vehicle on the Khardali-Nabatieh road,” the Lebanese army said in a statement posted on social media platform X.

The Israeli military said the vehicle targeted was “moving suspiciously” in “an active combat zone that had been evacuated”.

It said it “operates against the Hezbollah terrorist organisation, not against the Lebanese army”, adding that it was “reviewing the incident”.

A ceasefire that was supposed to end the fighting in Lebanon between Israel and Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah took effect on April 17, but has not been respected.

Hezbollah and Israel have frequently exchanged accusations of violating the truce, with each side justifying its attacks with alleged violations committed by the other side.

A further conditional truce was announced by Lebanese and Israeli envoys this week in Washington.

It would require Hezbollah to stop firing, withdraw from near the Israeli border and would see Lebanon’s army deploy to new “pilot zones” in the area, where it will exercise exclusive control.

But Hezbollah has rejected the agreement, calling for a full Israeli withdrawal from Lebanese territory.

The Lebanese army said on June 6 that “the continuation of the deliberate and repeated brutal Israeli aggression... is aimed at thwarting all efforts to reach a solution that will allow for the restoration of stability”.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun also denounced the latest attack, calling it a “flagrant violation of Lebanese sovereignty... despite Lebanon’s efforts in the Washington negotiations to put an end to the continued Israeli aggression that goes unchecked”.

On June 6, Israel renewed evacuation orders for five villages in Lebanon’s south and east, telling residents to move north of the Zahrani River. Its military conducted several strikes across south Lebanon, according to Lebanese state media.

“In light of the terrorist Hezbollah’s violation of the ceasefire agreement, the IDF is forced to act against it with force,” the Israeli military’s Arabic-language spokesman Avichay Adraee posted on Telegram. The IDF is short for Israel Defense Forces.

Lebanon was drawn into the wider Middle East war when Hezbollah attacked Israel on March 2 to avenge the Feb 28 killing of Iran’s supreme leader.

Israel responded with an extensive campaign of airstrikes and a ground invasion that have killed over 3,500 people.

Iran insists Lebanon be included in any agreement with the US to end their wider war.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said in an interview with CNN that aired on June 5 that Iran must stop interfering in Lebanon.

“It’s not your country, it’s our country,” he said. “It’s not your job to interfere into our country.”

“They are using Lebanon as a bargaining chip in their negotiation with the United States. It’s unacceptable,” he added.

“Hezbollah must understand that (there is) no other way but to sit and talk, no other way to solve this problem and to save what’s left except through negotiation and diplomacy,” Aoun said.

“The majority of the Lebanese people are fed up with war.” AFP