Four IDF Soldiers Including Battalion Commander Killed in Hezbollah Attack in Lebanon
A tank battalion commander of the Israeli occupation forces (IDF) and three other soldiers were killed in a Hezbollah attack in southern Lebanon overnight. The fatalities add to the growing list of IDF soldiers killed in Lebanon recently.
According to the Times of Israel, the IDF announced the slain officer was a 32-year-old lieutenant colonel. He was the commander of Battalion 52 of the 401st Armoured Brigade, from Beit HaShita. The names of the other soldiers are expected to be published later.
In the incident shortly after midnight, a drone or anti-tank missile reportedly struck the battalion commander’s tank in the village of Kfar Tebnit, southern Lebanon. The exact cause of the explosion that killed the four crew members is still under investigation by the IDF.
The senior officer who was killed had replaced the previous battalion commander, who was seriously wounded in southern Lebanon in April.
Israel continues its occupation and attacks on Lebanon despite the US and Iran having signed a ceasefire memorandum covering the area. More than 3,000 Lebanese civilians have been killed in the aggression since February.
Meanwhile, Hezbollah fighters continue their resistance. On Thursday, a bomb exploded in the Tyre area of southern Lebanon near the command sector of the IDF’s 36th Division. The blast killed a senior sergeant and wounded seven other soldiers, including senior officers.
According to operational details, on Wednesday around 5:00 p.m., a combat team from the deputy commander’s headquarters of the 36th Division, along with personnel from the Givati Brigade, was conducting a patrol in the Litani area near the town of Taybeh when an improvised explosive device detonated against the force.
As a result of the explosion, a reserve senior sergeant was killed and seven other personnel were wounded. The Israeli occupation forces stated that an investigation into the incident is ongoing.
Among the wounded were the deputy commander of the 36th Division (a colonel), a reserve battalion commander of the 556th Brigade (a lieutenant colonel), and a reserve soldier.
Israeli media further noted that the incident occurred hours after five soldiers were wounded when two explosive-laden drones attacked troops and an evacuation unit in separate, successive strikes, one of which left a soldier in serious condition.
The Israeli Health Ministry reported that a total of 9,230 casualties have been treated in hospitals since the start of the military aggression on Lebanon on 28 February. The ministry added that 21 new wounded were recorded since the last data update on Monday.
The data also showed that hospitals in Israel recorded 1,331 wounded on the northern front alone after the implementation of the ceasefire with Iran, while 913 wounded were reported from the same sector after the ceasefire with Lebanon.