Hezbollah ambushes Israeli soldiers on border, Lebanese media reports

The Hezbollah flag [Wikimedia Commons photo]

Lebanese media reports suggest that Hezbollah was behind the explosion that injured four Israeli soldiers on the Lebanese border on Wednesday.

Calling it an “ambush,” Lebanon’s Al-Akhbar newspaper, which is sympathetic to Hezbollah, describes how Israeli commandos crossed into Lebanese territory and were hit by an “explosive device containing four smaller devices filled with ball bearings.”

“Exactly 20 seconds later, a similar device was detonated. The two explosions had a blast radius of about 15 meters, enough to hit everything and everyone that moved within the blast zone,” Al-Akhbar reported.

“For the enemy, the obvious conclusion will be that the Resistance remains ready and vigilant, fully prepared to face any Israeli incursion,” the Lebanese newspaper added.

The Lebanese army said the Israeli soldiers were wounded 400 meters inside of Lebanese territory. Israel has not indicated whether or not its soldiers were in Lebanon.

Israel’s Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon said the soldiers were on a routine mission and inadvertently activated a land mine, Ynet reported.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also commented on the incident, but did not provide any details.

“Our soldiers defend us and our borders, which is what they were doing last night. We will continue to react to defend Israel’s borders,” Netanyahu was quoted as saying by Army Radio.

Israel and Hezbollah fought a bloody month-long war in the summer of 2006 after a Hezbollah guerillas crossed the border and attacked an Israeli patrol.