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Israeli Soldier Killed, Two Others Wounded in Hezbollah Attack
An Israeli soldier was killed and two others wounded on Friday in an attack by the Lebanese Islamic resistance group of Hezbollah in the disputed Shebaa Farms, a Lebanese security official said.
The attack was carried out at 12:30 pm local time (1030 GMT) when two bombs exploded and mortar fire was directed at an Israeli patrol, hitting directly an Israeli army Hummer jeep.
Hezbollah, or Party of God, has confirmed the attack, saying in a statement that its fighters "scored a direct hit on an Israeli jeep" and that all of its occupants were "killed or wounded."
Hezbollah had spearheaded a resistance against Israeli occupation of south Lebanon, forcing the Jewish state to withdraw from Lebanon's border area last May, ending 22-year occupation.
But Hezbollah, alongside Lebanese and Syrian governments, maintains that the Shebaa Farms belong to Lebanon, and vows to continue fighting against Israeli troops until it fully withdraws from Lebanese territories.
Israel, however, insists that it captured the disputed areas from Syria in the 1967 Middle East War and that it would solve the problem in peace talks with Syria.
In retaliation, the Israeli army fired about 60 shells on the outskirts of the villages of Kfar Shouba, Majidiyeh, Abassiyeh and Meri located near the Shebaa Farms, without inflicting casualties, Lebanese police said.
Meanwhile, Israeli helicopters hovered over the region, they said.
Hezbollah has carried out three similar attacks against Israeli troops in the past four months, including a bombing that wounded three Israeli soldiers on November 26.
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