Eight Israeli soldiers killed in fighting with Hezbollah in Lebanon

It is the heaviest loss suffered by the Israeli military on the Lebanese front in the past year. Hezbollah said its fighters clashed with Israeli forces inside Lebanon on Wednesday. Hezbollah also said it destroyed three Israeli Merkava tanks with missiles near the border town of Maroun El Ras.

Smoke rises over the southern suburbs of Beirut following an Israeli airstrike on October 2, 2024. Photo: Reuters

Hezbollah also said it had pushed back Israeli forces near several border towns and had also fired rockets at military posts inside Israel. The paramilitary group's media chief, Mohammad Afif, said those battles were only the "first round" and that Hezbollah had enough fighters, weapons and ammunition to push back Israel.

Israel's addition of infantry and armor from the 36th Division, which includes the Golani Brigade, the 188th Armored Brigade and the 6th Infantry Brigade, suggests the operation could expand beyond limited commando raids.

The military said its offensive was primarily aimed at destroying tunnels and other infrastructure on the border and there were no plans to expand the operation to target the Lebanese capital Beirut.

Early Wednesday morning, Israel continued its bombing of the southern suburbs of Beirut, where Hezbollah is headquartered, with more than a dozen airstrikes against what it said were Hezbollah targets.

Israel also carried out an airstrike on a residential building in the Mezzah suburb of the Syrian capital Damascus, killing three civilians and wounding three. Israel has been striking Iranian-linked targets in Syria for years.

In connection with Israel’s attack on Lebanon, the US government said on Wednesday that an American resident from Dearborn, Michigan, was killed in Lebanon. The man’s friends and neighbors said he died in an Israeli airstrike.

"We are deeply saddened by the death of Kamel Ahmad Jawad and extend our condolences to his family and friends. His death is a tragedy, like the deaths of so many other civilians in Lebanon," a White House spokesperson said.

The United States has faced criticism from some quarters for supporting its ally Israel in its wars in the Middle East, including in Dearborn, which has a large Arab-American population.

More than 1,900 people have been killed and more than 9,000 injured in Lebanon in nearly a year of cross-border fighting, with most of the deaths occurring in the past two weeks, according to Lebanese government figures. Lebanon's interim Prime Minister Najib Mikati said about 1.2 million Lebanese have been displaced by Israeli attacks.

G7 leaders have expressed "deep concern" about the Middle East crisis but said a diplomatic solution remains possible and a region-wide conflict is in no one's interests, a statement said.

Hoang Anh (according to Reuters, CNN)

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/tam-binh-si-israel-thiet-mang-khi-giao-tranh-voi-hezbollah-mot-nguoi-my-tu-vong-o-lebanon-post314999.html