Israel carried out air attacks on Hezbollah post in Lebanon on Wednesday. The attack came after shots were fired from across the border towards its troops the previous evening.
Earlier, the country’s military had said that a security incident was unfolding in the vicinity of Manara. It is near the UN-demarcated Blue Line border between the two nations.
The Israeli army tweeted that Lebanon fired shots toward IDF troops during operational activity in northern Israel last night.
The Israeli army responded with fire, and their aircraft struck Hezbollah observation posts near the border. This event is a severe one and the army is ready to combat any threat to our borders. The military further said that no Israeli soldiers were wounded in the firing.
Soldiers deployed illumination flares, smoke shells, and live fire after the shots were fired from the Lebanese side.
On Wednesday, in a televised statement, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah described the border flare-up as an important and sensitive matter. He refused to comment on it further.
Israel and Lebanon are technically at war, and the United Nations force UNIFIL is currently monitoring the ceasefire.
Lebanon had rejected an Israeli call to reform a UN peacekeeping force. The force is patrolling the border ahead of a UN Security Council vote to renew its mandate.
The incident also comes after Hezbollah announced on Saturday that it had brought down an Israeli drone that was flying over the Blue Line.
Hezbollah vowed to shoot down Israeli drones flying over Lebanon last September. Hezbollah issue this statement following an incident earlier when two drones packed with explosives targeted the group’s stronghold in south Beirut.
It carried out an infiltration attempt last month according to Israel. The Iran-backed Hezbollah group denied this claim.
United Nations Interim Force
The United Nations Interim force UNIFIL set up in the year 1978, is an UN-Nato peacekeeping mission. UNIFIL beefed-up after a month-long devastating war in the year 2006 between Israel and Hezbollah.
Israel and Lebanon are technically at war, and the UNIFIL is currently monitoring the ceasefire. The UNIFIL is a 10,500-strong force, in coordination with the Lebanese army. It is also currently monitoring the ceasefire and Israeli pullout from a demilitarized zone on the border.
Israel considers Hezbollah to be its most immediate threat. Hezbollah battled Israel in 2006 to a stalemate. The battle longed for one month.
Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric at the UN on Wednesday said that UNIFIL has launched an investigation. It has also called on both parties to fully cooperate with the probe.
