The statue of Christ in Dibil that was destroyed. (Credit: Photo posted on Facebook in 2021)
SOUTH LEBANON — The Israeli army said on Tuesday that it had installed, "in coordination with the residents" of the Christian village of Dibil in southern Lebanon, a new statue of Jesus Christ to replace the one that one of its soldiers had recently vandalized.
An image of the act of vandalism which went viral online, showed a man in military uniform striking the head of the statue — removed from the cross to which it was originally attached — with a sledgehammer.
The Israeli army's Arabic-speaking spokesperson Avichay Adraee announced in a post on X that it had sentenced two of its soldiers to 30 days of detention and removed them from combat — one for vandalizing the statue and the other for filming the scene.
Adraee specified that other soldiers present during the incident, "who neither reacted nor reported the facts," were summoned for explanatory sessions, after which decisions will be made about possible disciplinary action.
He added that the investigation found that the incident occurred during an operation carried out by an Israeli army unit in the village of Dibil. The Israeli army also expressed its "deep regrets" over the incident.
'Impossible to access the area'
When previously contacted by our publication, the president of the Dibil municipality (Bint Jbeil), Aql Naddaf, confirmed that the vandalized statue did indeed come from his village.
"We cannot confirm what happened because we can't access the area where the cross is located due to the presence of the Israeli army. We are currently checking on this," he had told our correspondent in the region.
A previous photo of this same statue, dated 2021, taken in Dibil, also helps corroborate the cross's location. However, it was not possible to precisely establish the date of this incident, as the Israeli army has been operating for several weeks in the village's vicinity, since launching its invasion of southern Lebanon, where it aims to establish a "buffer zone," a de facto occupation, whose boundaries were formalized on Sunday.
Not a stand-alone case
This incident is not a stand-alone case. Israel has committed significant destruction and numerous forms of vandalism against religious symbols.
During its previous ground invasion into southern Lebanon during the fall 2024 war, Israeli soldiers filmed themselves desecrating a monastery at Deir Mimas (Marjayoun), as well as a statue of Saint George in Yaroun (Bint Jbeil).
Israel also regularly attacks places of worship, including mosques and churches. Israel even targeted a synagogue in a strike on Tehran during its latest joint war with the U.S. on Iran.
Despite the 10-day cease-fire that took effect last week in Lebanon, the Israeli army continues to carry out strikes in southern Lebanon and continues its systematic destruction of homes and other buildings in the villages it occupies along the border.
On Sunday, Israel burned down several houses in Qantara (Marjayoun), as had been done in a neighboring village, Adsheet al-Qoussair, a few weeks ago, according to our correspondent's information. Additionally, Israeli soldiers detonated a neighborhood in Taybeh, in the same area, as well as homes in the village of Shamaa (Sour), also part of the "buffer zone" perimeter about 8 kilometers deep desired by Tel Aviv north of the Blue Line.
