Seoul Gazette - Israeli strike kills three Lebanese soldiers

Israel has launched an operation into Lebanon to root out the Tehran-backed armed group Hezbollah, which dragged Lebanon into the wider Middle East war by launching missiles on behalf of its sponsor.

Lebanon has vowed that it will disarm Hezbollah over time, but has also denounced Israel's invasion, accusing it of employing scorched earth tactics to drive civilians out of southern towns and villages.

In the latest incident, the Lebanese army said, two officers and a soldier were killed in a strike on a military vehicle on the road between Khardali and Nabatieh.

The Israeli military said the vehicle targeted was "moving suspiciously" in "an active combat zone" in an area it had ordered evacuated ahead of operations.

But it insisted it "operates against the Hezbollah terrorist organisation, not against the Lebanese army" and added that it was "reviewing the incident".

Hezbollah dubbed the attack a "heinous crime" and accused the Lebanese government of exposing its own country to bloodshed through its "complete surrender to the enemy's demands in Washington".

A ceasefire that was supposed to end the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah took effect on April 17, but has never been fully respected.

Hezbollah and Israel have frequently exchanged accusations of truce violations, with each side justifying its own attacks by citing the alleged violations committed by the other side.

A further conditional truce was announced by Lebanese and Israeli envoys this week in Washington.

It would require Hezbollah to stop firing, withdraw from near the Israeli border and would see Lebanon's army deploy to new "pilot zones" in the area, where it will exercise exclusive control.

But Hezbollah has rejected the agreement, demanding a full Israeli withdrawal from Lebanese territory.

- 'Deliberate and repeated' -

The Lebanese army said Saturday that "the continuation of the deliberate and repeated brutal Israeli aggression... is aimed at thwarting all efforts to reach a solution".

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun also denounced the latest attack, calling it a "flagrant violation of Lebanese sovereignty... despite Lebanon's efforts in the Washington negotiations to put an end to the continued Israeli aggression that goes unchecked".

On Saturday, Israel renewed evacuation orders for five villages in Lebanon's south and east, telling residents to move north of the Zahrani River.

Its military conducted several strikes across south Lebanon, according to Lebanese state media.

Hezbollah meanwhile said it had targeted Israeli troops.

Lebanon was drawn into the wider Middle East war when Hezbollah attacked Israel on March 2 to avenge the February 28 US-Israeli killing of Iran's supreme leader.

Israel responded with an extensive campaign of airstrikes and a ground invasion that have killed more than 3,500 people.

Iran insists Lebanon be included in any agreement with the United States to end their wider war.

But Aoun said, in an interview with CNN aired on Friday, that Iran must stop interfering in Lebanon.

"It's not your country, it's our country," he said. "It's not your job to interfere into our country."

"They are using Lebanon as a bargaining chip in their negotiation with the United States. It's unacceptable," he added. "The majority of the Lebanese people are fed up with war."

A.Uhm--SG