Lebanon’s Hezbollah movement said it had targeted an Israeli army border patrol with a bomb yesterday in an attack that prompted retaliatory fire from the Jewish state.
The attack appeared to be revenge for an Israeli air strike in Syria in late December that killed infamous Hezbollah militant Samir Kantar.
In a statement, Hezbollah said the attack in the disputed Shebaa Farms area along the Lebanon-Israel ceasefire line “destroyed the armoured Hummer vehicle and injured those in it”.
It said the attack was carried out by a group named for Kantar, who commanded Hezbollah’s operations in Syria’s Golan Heights, parts of which are occupied by Israel.
The Israeli military confirmed that its forces had been targeted in the border area.
“IED detonated against IDF (Israeli army) vehicles in the area of Mt Dov,” Israeli army spokesman Peter Lerner wrote in a tweet, referring to the disputed Shebaa Farms.
He said the army responded with “targeted artillery fire”.
An Israeli army spokeswoman said there were no indications so far of injuries on the Israeli side.
Lebanese security sources said Israel responded with artillery fire into two villages adjacent to the Shebaa Farms, but had no immediate information on damage or injuries.
The Shebaa Farms have been under Israeli occupation since the 1967 Middle East war. Lebanon says the area is Lebanese territory, while the UN says it was annexed from Syria.