Israel kills 2 near Nabatieh, says it captured Hezbollah fighter in Bint Jbeil

SOUTH LEBANON — Israeli attacks continued Wednesday across southern Lebanon, including demolitions, drone strikes, artillery fire and explosions, despite the framework agreement between Lebanon and Israel.

However, the situation did not see a major escalation, according to our correspondent, as tensions rose across the Middle East following U.S. strikes on Iran, the end of the protocol agreement between Washington and Tehran, and Iranian strikes in the Gulf.

The Israeli military on Wednesday said its troops had seized a Hezbollah militant during an encounter in southern Lebanon a day earlier and transferred him to Israel for questioning.

The militant was captured in the Bint Jbeil area on Tuesday, where Israeli troops clashed with Hezbollah fighters. The army said the detainee was a member of Hezbollah’s Radwan Force, the group’s elite unit, and accused him of taking part in attacks against Israeli soldiers and civilians during the war.

The noose nonetheless appeared to be tightening around the strategic heights of Ali Taher, south of the Nabatieh region, where an Israeli flag was raised Tuesday. The outskirts of the hill were targeted multiple times by the Israeli army overnight, including artillery fire and, on at least two occasions, the launch of flares above the area. In the middle of the afternoon, an Israeli drone strike again targeted Ali Taher, while artillery fire hit the same area, which Israeli forces are seeking to control.

At the end of June, the Israeli army claimed to have surrounded a Hezbollah underground complex on Ali Taher, trapping dozens of Hezbollah fighters inside. The hill carries both symbolic and strategic significance. Located north of the Litani River, it is considered a key vantage point overlooking much of southeastern Lebanon, including Beaufort Castle, the Nabatieh district, the Iqlim al-Touffah region and Jabal Rihan in the Jezzine district.

Blasts in Bint Jbeil and Deir Siryan

The Israeli army also carried out a significant demolition in Bint Jbeil in the morning, following a large nighttime explosion in Deir Siryan, in the Marjayoun district.

During the day, the Zawtar-Farah intersection in Nabatieh district, as well as the area between Beit Yahoun and Aita Jabal in the Bint Jbeil district, were targeted by Israeli artillery fire. The army also fired machine guns toward Haddatha in the Bint Jbeil district and carried out a blast in Arnoun, in the Nabatieh district.

The Israeli army further said it had killed a man it identified as a Hezbollah fighter during a "face-to-face" confrontation inside a building in Bint Jbeil. According to its statement, soldiers from the "Yiftach" reserve brigade were searching a building where a clash had taken place the previous Thursday, during which an Israeli reservist was seriously wounded. The army said it had not located the shooter at the time.

In a separate statement, the Israeli army said its troops had captured a Hezbollah fighter during clashes in the Bint Jbeil area the previous day and transferred him to Israel for questioning.

"The arrested terrorist is a member of Hezbollah's Radwan Force, the group's elite unit, responsible for attacks against Israeli soldiers and Israeli civilians throughout the war," the army said.

"During the search, a Hezbollah militiaman holed up inside the building opened fire on the soldiers, who immediately returned fire and killed him," the statement said.