A picture taken from the Israeli side of border with Lebanon shows Israeli shelling around the southern Lebanese village of Aita al-Shaab on Tuesday. (Credit: Jalaa Marey/AFP)
BEIRUT — A Lebanese Army soldier critically injured by Israeli artillery Tuesday afternoon succumbed to his wounds sometime later, a security source confirmed with L'Orient Today. This is the first Lebanese Army soldier to be killed in the conflict so far.
A statement from the Lebanese Army says: "An army military position in the ... Adaisseh area was bombarded by the Israeli enemy, leaving one soldier martyred and three others injured."
The soldier was stationed at a Lebanese Army site on the hills of al-Owaidah, in the southern village of Taybeh, when it was targeted by Israeli artillery. Taybeh and Adaisseh are both within the Marjeyoun district of southern Lebanon.
A source in the Lebanese Army confirmed this event with L'Orient Today, as did Abbas Diab, head of the Taybeh municipality. Reports originally stated four Lebanese soldiers injured, with one in critical condition. The army transported the injured soldiers to a hospital for treatment.
Aggression at Lebanon-Israel border began Oct. 8 in response to Israel's bombardment of Gaza, which was in turn in response to Hamas' unprecedented attack on Israel. The border clashes involve Hezbollah and some allied Palestinian factions — the Lebanese Army has not taken an active part in combat so far.