Hours after the two sides agreed to stop fighting, Israel and Hezbollah traded attacks in Lebanon Saturday threatening to upend a fragile peace agreement between the US and Iran.
The terror group launched “some 50 projectiles at Israeli troops” overnight, prompting Israel Defense Forces’ attacks on what an official described as “Hezbollah targets.”
An IDF soldier was killed and 13 others were wounded by the terror group in the Nabatieh-area village of Kfar Tebnit, the Israeli military said.
“Hezbollah broke the ceasefire, not Israel,” Israeli Ambassador to the US Yechiel Leiter wrote on X Saturday. “Terrorists lie. Hezbollah is a terrorist organization. Hezbollah lies.
“Iran is using its proxy to extract concessions. That is the modus operandi of the murderous regime in Tehran.”
The IDF carried out a wave of retaliatory strikes killing at least 27 people, according to Lebanese officials, the Times of Israel reported.
Hezbollah denied that it was the the first to strike, claiming it had “adhered to the ceasefire” since the truce with Israel, which was brokered by the US and Qatar, went into effect Friday afternoon at 4 p.m., local time.
The terror group — based in southern Lebanon — said its fighters engaged with IDF troops attempting to advance on Lebanese territory.
“We will not tolerate any attempt by the enemy to seize land and expand its occupation,” Hezbollah said in a statement Saturday.
“The continuation of brutal Israeli attacks aims to obstruct any solution that would allow for restoring stability in Lebanon,” the Lebanese army said of Israel’s actions that have sparked unprecedented criticism of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from President Trump.
“I’m not happy with the way Israel has handled themselves with Lebanon and Hezbollah,” the president told reporters on the sidelines of the G7 summit earlier this week.
“Israel is fighting Hezbollah too long, and too many people are being killed,” Trump also said. “You don’t have to knock down an apartment house every time you’re looking for somebody.”
He warned the Israeli prime minister that he “has to be more responsible with respect to Lebanon” and urged him to accept the cease-fire Friday.
Under pressure from the Trump administration, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz and Netanyahu instructed the Israeli military to “hold its fire” in Lebanon on Saturday, Channel 12 news reported.
