An Israeli strike killed three Lebanese troops in south Lebanon on Thursday, as France hosted a conference to rally support for Lebanese state forces, which are seen as vital to any diplomatic resolution of the war between Israel and Hezbollah.
The Lebanese soldiers were killed in an early morning strike as they were evacuating wounded people on the outskirts of southern village of Yater, the Lebanese army said. There was no immediate comment on the strike from the Israeli military, which has previously said it is not operating against the Lebanese army, but apologized days ago for another fatal strike.
The area is part of the border region pounded by Israel during its month-long offensive against the heavily armed, Iran-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah, in a conflict that spiralled out of the Gaza war.
Armed and trained by the United States, the Lebanese army has little sway on the ground in Hezbollah’s strongholds in southern Lebanon. It recruits from across Lebanon’s myriad sectarian communities and has been seen as a guarantor of the civil peace since the 1975-90 civil war.
Lt.-Col Jordan Hertzberg of the Israel Defence Forces said in an interview with CBC’s Briar Stewart that Israeli forces had found Hezbollah fortifications, missiles and shells ‘under the nose’ of UN peacekeepers based near the Lebanon-Israel border whose mandate is to support the Lebanese army in securing the border region.
Its deployment into the south is a key part of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701 that ended a 2006 war between Hezbollah and Israel. The Paris meeting is set to reiterate that Resolution 1701 should be the basis for a cessation to the current hostilities.
U.S. Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin told his Israeli counterpart on Wednesday that Washington had concerns about strikes against the Lebanese armed forces while urging Israel to take steps to ensure the safety of the Lebanese army and the UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon, the Pentagon said.
Heavy losses suffered by Hezbollah
A security source in Lebanon said 13 Lebanese army troops had been killed whilst on active duty since the start of hostilities last year. Another 16 had been killed whilst at home. Israel has apologized in the past when it has confirmed Lebanese military deaths.
Israel launched its Lebanon offensive with the declared aim of securing the return home of tens of thousands of Israelis who evacuated their homes in northern Israel due to a year of cross-border rocket fire by Hezbollah.
Israel has dealt heavy blows to Hezbollah, killing its leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah along with other top commanders and potential Nasrallah successors using airstrikes to pound its strongholds in the south, the Bekaa Valley and Beirut’s southern suburbs.
The Israeli military said early on Thursday that its “troops continue their limited, localized, targeted ground raids against the Hezbollah terrorist organization in southern Lebanon.”
Israeli troops had “eliminated dozens of terrorists” and the Israeli airforce had “struck over 160 Hezbollah terror targets, including launchers and terrorist infrastructure sites throughout Lebanon,” it said.
France, Germany announce aid packages for Lebanon
With more than 2,500 people killed by Israel’s offensive in Lebanon and over one million forced from their homes, according to Lebanese authorities, the Paris conference aims to mobilize both humanitarian aid and support for the Lebanese military.
Some 70 government delegations and 15 international organizations were participating, with the goals including at least 500 million euros ($746 million Cdn) in humanitarian aid as well as a push for a ceasefire.
Lebanon’s caretaker prime minister said international support would be needed to shore up the army, including new recruits, and to rebuild the country’s destroyed infrastructure.
“The storm we are currently witnessing is unlike any other, because it carries the seeds of total destruction, not only for our country, but for all human values, as well,” Najib Mikati told delegates.
France has historical ties with Lebanon and has been working with Washington in trying to secure a ceasefire. President Emmanuel Macron said France would provide 100 million euros ($149 million Cdn) in aid, while Germany said it would give 96 million euros ($143 million Cdn).
“There needs to be a ceasefire in Lebanon. More damage, more victims, more strikes will not enable the end of terrorism or ensure security for everyone,” said Macron.
But U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken skipped the Paris conference, continuing a tour of the Middle East on a final push for peace before next month’s U.S. election, while regional power Saudi Arabia, which has been reluctant to engage in Lebanon, sent a junior minister.
Neither Israel, whose prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, criticized the initiative, nor Iran were invited.
Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly and Stéphane Dion, Ottawa’s ambassador in France, led the Canadian delegation at the conference.
Canada has previously announced aid packages for Lebanese civilians that according to International Development Minister Ahmed Hussen on Oct. 10, have amounted to $25 million.
Hezbollah declared solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza following the Hamas-led attack on Israel, which killed 1,200 people including several Canadian citizens, Israel says. The rampage also saw 250 people abducted, according to Israeli government tallies, with about 100 yet to be repatriated.
Israel’s retaliatory offensive in Gaza led to heavy losses, displacement of people and destruction in the territory. More than 42,847 Palestinians have been killed and 100,544 injured in Israel’s military offensive, the Gaza health ministry said on Thursday. The ministry does not distinguish between combatants and civilians, but has said thousands of women and children have been killed.
The Israeli military named on Wednesday six Palestinian Al Jazeera reporters in Gaza who it said were also members of Hamas or Islamic Jihad militant groups, an allegation the Qatari network rejected as an attempt to silence journalists.
The Committee to Protect Journalists’ Middle East program said on X that the allegations amounted to smearing Palestinian journalists “with unsubstantiated ‘terrorist’ labels.”
