Israeli soldier killed, two wounded in south Lebanon
Lebanon, Military, 10/20/1997

Hizbullah guerrillas attacked Israeli troops in south Lebanon Saturday, killing an Israeli soldier and wounding two others, security sources said.

The sources said Hizbullah guerrillas ambushed an Israeli tank with machine guns and rockets as it traveled near the village of Rihan, in the eastern sector of a border strip Israel occupies in south Lebanon.

One Israeli soldier was killed and two others received moderate injuries when the tank was directly hit by a Sagger missile, the sources said. The dead Israeli soldier and the two wounded were evacuated by military helicopter for treatment in Israel.

Hizbullah guerrillas also fired rockets and mortars on an outpost manned by militiamen of the South Lebanon Army, Israel's proxy militia in south Lebanon. There were no casualties from the attack on the SLA Ahmadiyeh outpost, on the edge of the border enclave.

Hizbullah claimed responsibility for the attack, which triggered heavy Israeli retaliation. Israeli troops bombarded suspected guerrilla hideouts and strongholds in villages facing the enclave.

Israeli gun ships also strafed suspected Hizbullah bases in the hills of Iqlim al-Tuffah, where clashes between Hizbullah fighters and Israeli troops are frequent. No casualties were reported from the retaliatory shelling.

Saturday's casualties brought to 37 the number of Israeli troops killed and to 75 the number of Israelis wounded in south Lebanon this year in the war with Hizbullah, or Party of God, which leads the war against Israeli occupation forces in the south.

Meanwhile, on Sunday a South Lebanon Army agent was reported killed in the explosion of a land mine set by the Resistance near Jezzine, yesterday. The Resistance, which announced its responsibility for the incident, claimed that the deceased was a senior member of the SLA.

Previous Stories:
  Israel raids Palestinian base near Beirut, injures civilian in South   (10/18/1997)
  Remains of Israeli tank recovered   (10/17/1997)
  Israel's man in south Lebanon urges Israeli troops to stay   (10/15/1997)

Please add a link on your webiste pointing to ArabicNews.com and bookmark ArabicNews.com & subscribe to our daily email news bulletin.

Search