Israeli troops kill Hezbollah terrorists in Lebanon encounter

Israel Defense Forces killed several Hezbollah terrorists in the Ali al-Taher Ridge area on Saturday, about six miles north of the border with Lebanon, the military said.

An IDF officer was moderately wounded in the incident, the IDF noted. He was evacuated to a hospital and his family was notified.

“The IDF will continue to operate to remove any threat to its soldiers and will not allow the Hezbollah terrorist organization to harm Israeli civilians,” the IDF added.

Overnight Thursday, the Israeli military detonated a network of Hezbollah tunnels in the Beaufort Castle area in the eastern part of Southern Lebanon containing roughly 700 tons of explosive devices, Ynet reported.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the operation follows Hezbollah’s “blatant violation of the ceasefire agreement” on Wednesday, referring to an explosive drone Hezbollah launched at an IDF heavy engineering vehicle.

The IDF said the underground network, built over two decades and funded by Iran, consisted of multiple subterranean levels and functioned as the primary command center for Hezbollah’s Bader Unit in Southern Lebanon.

The United Nations on Saturday expressed concern over the escalation in Lebanon in recent days.

“The scale of the detonations and demolitions taking place in south Lebanon is deeply concerning, with a devastating impact on civilian infrastructure, cultural heritage and the collective memory of communities,” the U.N. said in a statement.

On Friday, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun labeled the detonation “an extremely dangerous escalation” and “a direct threat to the process which was launched as part of the framework agreement” reached with Israel during U.S.-mediated talks in July, AFP reported.

Rubio: Israeli-Lebanese peace “achievable”

Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Friday lauded the Israeli-Lebanese framework, saying it is “unprecedented.”

“In fact this is the first time the Israelis and the Lebanese government have spoken, at the official level, in close to 30 years,” he added.

There is still a lot of work to be done to accomplish peace, but it is “achievable,” Rubio stated.

.@SecRubio: "The deal with Lebanon and Israel is unprecedented… This is the first time the Israelis and the Lebanese government have spoken, at the official level, in close to 30 years… and of course, as you announced last night, Mr. President, this disarmament deal that you… pic.twitter.com/tFAOPTFkrF

The next round of U.S.-led talks between Israel and Lebanon will be held in Rome on Aug. 4-6, according to a State Department official.

“We are entering these discussions with significant momentum following the successful launch of the first pilot zone in Southern Lebanon and President Aoun’s productive meeting with President Trump last week,” the official said, according to JNS correspondent Mike Wagenheim.

Technical teams in Rome will focus on advancing full implementation of the trilateral framework agreement, including expanding pilot zones, resolving outstanding border disputes and working toward a comprehensive peace and security agreement, according to the official.

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