Three Hezbollah operatives were killed in a vehicle in southern Lebanon after it was attacked by an Israeli drone strike near the city of Naqoura on Saturday morning, the IDF reported.
One of the men was a weapons technician, one of the sources said.
Arab media and local Lebanese reports, which also said the attack was by Israel, did not initially report the identities of the targets being operatives of the Lebanese terror organization. The Israeli army said it was checking reports on the incident.
The aftermath of the drone strike can be seen below:
צה"ל חיסל מחבלים המשויכים לאיראן בלבנון, שהיו אחראים לירי לעבר ישראל | תיעוד התקיפה@ItayBlumental @ela1949 צילום: דובר צה"ל pic.twitter.com/QXUl1PzsZI
— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) March 2, 2024
Attack jointly against Iran and Hezbollah
The terrorists operated under the Imam Hossein Division, which operates for Hezbollah and is affiliated with Iran, the IDF reported. IDF fighter jets also struck Hezbollah terrorist infrastructure in the Labbouneh area in southern Lebanon, and overnight, two Hezbollah military compounds were struck in the area of Blida.
Israeli strikes since October have killed more than 200 Hezbollah fighters and some 50 civilians in Lebanon, while attacks from Lebanon into Israel have killed a dozen Israeli soldiers and five civilians. Tens of thousands of Israelis and Lebanese have fled villages on both sides of the frontier.
Like the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas, Hezbollah is an ally of Iran. It says its campaign at the border aims to support Palestinians under Israeli fire in the Gaza Strip.
Hezbollah signaled this week that it would halt its attacks if Israel's Gaza offensive stops, but it is also ready to keep on fighting if the Gaza war continues. On Friday, Hezbollah announced the deaths of four members killed in Lebanon.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant last Sunday indicated that Israel planned to increase attacks on Hezbollah in the event of a Gaza ceasefire, but was open to a diplomatic deal to withdraw Hezbollah fighters from the border.
Lebanon's caretaker prime minister Najib Mikati told Reuters on Thursday a halt to fighting in Gaza as early as next week would trigger indirect talks to end hostilities at the border.