Israeli forces have opened fire on a Lebanese army unit operating alongside UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon, while a separate Israeli drone strike hit eastern Lebanon, marking fresh incidents that strain a fragile ceasefire.
Lebanon’s official National News Agency (NNA) reported on Friday that an Israeli tank fired near a Lebanese army force conducting a joint field mission with troops from the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) near Wadi al-Asafir, south of the town of Khiam in the Marjayoun district.
The tank reportedly emerged from a newly established Israeli military position in the Hammams area before opening fire.
The report did not specify the number of casualties or the extent of damage. The Israeli military did not immediately comment.
Israel repeatedly targets UN in Lebanon
UN peacekeeping forces have repeatedly said their positions in southern Lebanon have come under Israeli fire, urging respect for the ceasefire. Those calls have largely gone unanswered, according to UN officials and Lebanese authorities.
Hours later, an Israeli drone struck a car near the Majdaloun junction in Lebanon’s eastern Baalbek-Hermel province, an area bordering Syria that has seen a series of security incidents in recent months.
NNA said it was not immediately clear whether the strike caused casualties.
Israel’s continued ceasefire violations
The incidents come despite a ceasefire that formally ended more than a year of hostilities between Israel and Lebanon, a conflict that killed more than 4,000 people and wounded around 17,000, against the backdrop of Israel’s war in Gaza.
Under the agreement, Israeli forces were due to fully withdraw from southern Lebanon by January 2025. Instead, Israel has only partially pulled back and continues to maintain a military presence at five border outposts, according to Lebanese officials.
Lebanese authorities say Israeli ceasefire violations since the deal took effect have killed and wounded hundreds of people, while Israeli forces continue to occupy five strategic hilltops seized during the latest war, in addition to other Lebanese territory held for decades.
Israel launched attacks against Lebanon in October 2023 and escalated them into a full-scale war in September 2024.
Beyond Lebanon, Israel also occupies territory in Syria and Palestine and has rejected calls for withdrawal and the establishment of a Palestinian state.
