U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin speaking at a press conference in Kiev, Oct. 21, 2024. (Credit: Sergei Olexandrov/AFP)
U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin expressed “deep concern” to his Israeli counterpart on Wednesday about Israeli army fire that has killed Lebanese armed forces personnel.
On Thursday morning, the Lebanese army announced the death of three more of its soldiers, including an officer, in a strike on Yater, in the southern Lebanese district of Bint Jbeil. On Sunday, it had already announced the killing of three of its soldiers in Israeli fire on one of its vehicles in the south of the country, where the Israeli army is carrying out incursions against Hezbollah.
In a call with Yoav Gallant on Wednesday, Lloyd Austin “expressed deep concern about reports of strikes against Lebanese armed forces and stressed the importance of taking all necessary steps to ensure the safety of the Lebanese armed forces” and UNIFIL peacekeepers, according to a Pentagon statement.
The Israeli army, which has extended its war against Hamas in Gaza to Lebanon to fight Hezbollah, is carrying out operations on Lebanese soil and via air strikes, which have hit members of the United Nations forces as well as the Lebanese army on Sunday.
The U.S. statement comes as the head of U.S. diplomacy, Antony Blinken, leads a regional tour aimed at containing military escalation in the region, a month after the war in Gaza spilled over into Lebanon with Israel's military offensive.
The United States is Israel's main diplomatic and military ally, and one of the main providers of funds and equipment to the Lebanese Army.
Humanitarian convoy reaches Rmeish, Ain Ibl, Dibil despite obstacles
