A report by the Hebrew newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth revealed that Hezbollah fighters attempted to seize the body of an Israeli soldier after he fell in their ambush in the town of Adaisseh, near the border.
The report noted that the Egoz Unit managed to recover the soldier’s body and extract it from the area.
Israeli elite forces had fallen into a Hezbollah-laid ambush after their infiltration into Adaisseh was uncovered two days ago. According to Hezbollah’s military media, the fighters initially allowed the soldiers to proceed with their mission. Once a second Israeli force advanced, heavy gunfire was directed at them, preventing reinforcement and medical teams from reaching the battlefield to evacuate the casualties.
Hezbollah confirmed that on Thursday, its fighters succeeded in killing about 17 Israeli officers and soldiers during the ongoing battles in the border areas of southern Lebanon.
For the first time, Hezbollah’s military statements referred to the “Islamic Resistance Operations Room,” announcing: “The Islamic Resistance Operations Room, through reliable field and security sources, confirms that the number of Israeli officers and soldiers killed in the heroic confrontations on Thursday has reached 17.”
Hezbollah also declared that it repelled six Israeli incursions and attempted infiltrations in southern Lebanon, in addition to launching 23 attacks on northern Israeli territories since dawn on Thursday.
Since September 23 of last year, the Israeli occupation has been waging a brutal aggression on Lebanon, resulting in no less than 1,120 martyrs, including children and women, 3,040 wounded, and the displacement of 1.2 million people.
Meanwhile, air raid sirens continue to sound across the Israeli territories at an unprecedented rate due to the heavy bombardment from Hezbollah, which includes rockets, drones, and artillery targeting military sites and settlements. According to observers, the Israeli military censors are enforcing strict measures to conceal the actual human and material losses.
Hezbollah reported via its Telegram channel that, as of 17:00 GMT, it had detonated four explosive devices on Israeli forces infiltrating the southern Lebanese towns of Maroun al-Ras and Yaron, causing “significant casualties” in their ranks.
Hezbollah also launched a missile salvo targeting a gathering of Israeli soldiers in the Thaghra area, an overgrown zone near the town of Adaisseh in southern Lebanon, and repelled an Israeli advance using artillery fire at the Fatima Gate border crossing.
In the course of its attacks, Hezbollah stated it launched 100 Katyusha rockets and six Falaq missiles at the Israeli settlement of Metula and its surrounding orchards, including its military site.
Hezbollah further claimed it struck the Israeli military’s Sakhneen base in the Gulf of Akko with rockets, as well as an Israeli Merkava tank in the settlement of Natuva with a guided missile.
The party also reported multiple missile strikes targeting concentrations and movements of Israeli soldiers in eight settlements: Avivim (twice), Beit HaEmek, Shomera, Saasa (three times), Misgav Am (twice), Kfar Giladi (twice), Adamit, and Yiron.