Israeli army announces deaths of 6 soldiers in fighting with Hezbollah

The Israeli military announced Wednesday that six soldiers were killed in a clash with Hezbollah fighters in southern Lebanon.

The army said all of them were serving in the Golani Brigade's 51st Battalion.

In a statement on its website, it said the soldiers were killed in an exchange of fire with Hezbollah operatives inside a building in a village.

The military said the slain soldiers included Itay Marcovich, 22, who held the rank of captain.

Israel's Yedioth Ahronoth daily provided additional details on the deaths of the soldiers, reporting that “the unit entered the sector the previous night as part of the 36th Division's operation to conduct sweeps near the Lebanese border.”

An initial military probe indicated that at approximately 10 a.m., a detachment of Golani troops entered a building where Hezbollah fighters had been lying in wait and opened fire at close range, the daily added.

The newspaper noted that the army suspects that Hezbollah's fighters emerged from an underground passage, avoiding prior Israeli attacks in the area.

A close-quarters battle erupted inside the building, resulting in the death of at least one Hezbollah fighter. Fighting continued for several hours until Israeli forces secured the area, the report added.

With the latest casualties, the Israeli military's death toll since the beginning of the Gaza conflict on Oct. 7, 2023 has reached 792 officers and soldiers, including 373 killed since the ground invasion of Gaza began on Oct. 27 of the same year, according to Israeli military data.

Additionally, 5,334 Israeli soldiers have been injured, including 2,424 since the ground operations in Gaza commenced.

Israel has launched a massive air campaign against Lebanon since late September against what it claims are targets of Hezbollah in an escalation from year-long cross-border warfare between Israel and the Lebanese group since the start of Israel's brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip on Oct. 7 last year.

More than 3,360 people have been killed, over 14,300 injured and more than 1 million displaced by the Israeli attacks since last October, according to Lebanese health authorities.

Israel expanded the conflict by launching an incursion into southern Lebanon on Oct. 1.