Three Lebanese soldiers, including two officers, killed in Israeli strike in southern Lebanon

Three Lebanese soldiers, including two officers, were killed Saturday morning in an Israeli strike on a military vehicle on the road between Khardali and Nabatieh. Responding to the attack, the Israeli army said the vehicle had been moving in a "suspicious" manner toward its forces near Kfar Tebnit.

"An aggressive and barbaric Israeli strike targeted a military vehicle on the Kfar Tebnit-Khardali road, killing two officers, with the ranks of brigadier general and captain, as well as one soldier," the Lebanese Army said in a statement.

The army added that "the continuation of Israel's savage, deliberate and repeated aggression against Lebanon, its people and its army only strengthens our steadfastness, faith and determination to confront these hostile attempts aimed at undermining all efforts to reach a solution that would restore stability, achieve a comprehensive cease-fire and secure Israel's withdrawal from occupied Lebanese territories."

In a separate statement, the army identified the victims as Wissam Sabra, Elie Khoury and Hussein Abdel Ali Ghazal.

Commenting on the strike, Israeli army Arabic-language spokesperson Avichay Adraee said in a post on X that the military vehicle had been moving in a "suspicious" manner toward Israeli soldiers near Kfar Tebnit, in an "active combat zone subject to an evacuation order."

"After the vehicle was identified and in light of the intelligence received, as well as the threat it allegedly posed to the troops, it was targeted," the statement said, adding that "the incident remains under investigation."

Adraee further stressed that "this was a combat zone where any movement requires prior coordination with our forces." The Israeli army also said that "the information available to it indicates significant Hezbollah presence and activity in the area."

Reacting to the attack, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun condemned in a statement "in the strongest terms" the Israeli strike that killed two officers and a soldier, who "join the long list of military and civilian martyrs, children, women, rescuers and journalists whose pure blood has watered the precious land of the South."

The president said the attack constituted "a flagrant violation of Lebanese sovereignty, as well as international laws and norms." According to him, it forms part of "the ongoing escalation that threatens stability and security in the South," despite Lebanon's efforts within the framework of negotiations held in Washington to end Israeli attacks that continue "without restraint."

Aoun offered his condolences to the army command and the families of the victims, affirming that Lebanon "will not compromise on protecting its territory and its people" and that such attacks would not deter it from defending its national rights.

He called on the international community to assume its responsibilities, put an end to these repeated aggressions and ensure compliance with relevant international resolutions in order to preserve Lebanon's security and stability.

On Wednesday, following a fourth round of negotiations between Lebanon and Israel in Washington, a new cease-fire agreement was announced after the truce that took effect on April 17 was never respected. The agreement provides for a cease-fire conditioned on a "complete halt" to Hezbollah fire, while Israeli military operations and strikes in South Lebanon would continue for the time being. Hezbollah rejected the agreement, as it had the previous one. Fighting on the ground has continued.

‘An attack against Lebanon’

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam also offered his condolences to the families of the slain soldiers, saying that "their targeting by Israel constitutes a crime and an attack against Lebanon and all Lebanese."

Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, for his part, said that "the crime committed today is in no way a mistake or a misunderstanding, as Israel is trying to portray it."

During a phone call with Lebanese Army Commander Rodolphe Haykal, Berri conveyed his condolences to the military institution, its command, officers and soldiers, as well as to the families of Brig. Gen. Wissam Sabra, Capt. Elie Khoury and soldier Hassan Ghazal.

UNIFIL also extended its condolences to the Lebanese Army, describing the attack as a "serious violation of sovereignty and Resolution 1701."

Jordan's Foreign Ministry said the strike constituted "a flagrant violation of Lebanon's sovereignty, security and stability, as well as a clear violation of international law." It also stressed "the need to immediately halt Israeli attacks against Lebanon, consolidate the cease-fire agreement and fully commit to implementing U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701 in all its provisions."

Saudi Arabia likewise expressed "its total rejection of any infringement on Lebanon's sovereignty and its army." Egypt also condemned the attack against the Lebanese military.

Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said that "the targeting of Lebanese military personnel by the Israeli enemy once again confirms that the occupying entity attacks all components of Lebanon," adding that "this enemy makes no distinction between a soldier, a resistance fighter or a civilian, nor between a child, a woman or an elderly person."