6 IDF soldiers hurt in Hezbollah drone attack; IAF responds with widespread strikes

2 moderately wounded, 4 lightly; IDF targets rocket launch sites and military compounds in southern Lebanon, foils attack by anti-tank missile squad near Zar’it

By Emanuel Fabian
and ToI Staff 10 December 2023, 3:52 pm Edit
Black smoke rises from an Israeli airstrike on the outskirts of Yaroun, a Lebanese border village with Israel, in south Lebanon, December 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
Black smoke rises from an Israeli airstrike on the outskirts of Yaroun, a Lebanese border village with Israel, in south Lebanon, December 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

Two IDF soldiers were moderately wounded and four others were lightly hurt Sunday by shrapnel and smoke inhalation in a Hezbollah drone attack on a base in the Western Galilee.

The IDF said that two of the drones launched from Lebanon were shot down by the Iron Dome missile defense system.

The Iran-backed Hezbollah terror group claimed responsibility for the attack.

The wounded were taken to Galilee Medical Center in Nahariya. Two were listed in moderate condition after sustaining shrapnel injuries, while the other four were lightly hurt as a result of the blast and smoke inhalation.

Meanwhile, the IDF said it had carried out a “widespread” wave of airstrikes against Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon in response to repeated border attacks, hitting targets including rocket launch sites, military compounds, and other infrastructure belonging to the terror group.

In another incident, the IDF said it struck an anti-tank missile squad in southern Lebanon that had attempted to carry out an attack near the northern Israel community of Zar’it.

The military also conducted multiple strikes against terror targets in Lebanon on Friday and Saturday, as Hezbollah-led attacks on Israel’s northern frontier continued.

Medical officials said Saturday evening that three soldiers had been wounded in Hezbollah attacks on the northern border the previous day. It did not provide details on the attacks.

Rambam Hospital in Haifa said one soldier was brought to the medical center on Friday morning in good condition, after being wounded by shrapnel. Later in the day, two soldiers arrived at the hospital after being wounded in a separate attack. One was initially listed in serious condition and was later upgraded to moderate. The second soldier was listed in light-to-moderate condition.

The Israel Football Association’s Referee Association said the seriously wounded soldier was Niv Steif, a soccer referee in Israel’s top league currently doing reserve duty. It said he was injured by an anti-tank missile.

Several rockets targeted Israeli border communities throughout Saturday, causing no injuries. Ground troops responded with artillery at the sources of fire. In one instance, the army said tanks shelled an area near the northern town of Metula “to remove a threat.”

Israeli forces also carried out various strikes in southern Lebanon, targeting Hezbollah sites, cells and command centers.

Hezbollah-led attacks along the northern border with Lebanon have been constant since the Israel-Hamas war began on October 7, when thousands of terrorists massacred some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in Israel and took some 240 hostages. Daily exchanges of fire with Hezbollah, Hamas, and other terror groups are raising fears of a broader conflagration.

The skirmishes on the border have resulted in four civilian deaths on the Israeli side, as well as the deaths of six IDF soldiers. There have also been a number of rocket attacks from Syria, without any injuries.

On the Lebanese side, more than 120 have been killed, according to an AFP tally. The toll includes 98 Hezbollah members — some of whom were killed in Syria — 16 Palestinian terrorists, at least 14 civilians and three journalists.

Meanwhile, Hezbollah said one of three members killed Friday in an alleged Israeli drone strike in Syria was Hassan Ali Dakdouk — the son of Ali Mussa Dakdouk, thought to be in charge of the terror group’s operations in southern Syria.

Kan news reported that the elder Dakdouk was responsible for training pro-Iranian militias in Iraq with the aim of attacking American forces. He was detained by US forces in Iraq in 2007 but was later released.

Most Popular
read more: