BEIRUT: Fierce clashes broke out after Israeli forces carried out a helicopter-borne landing in eastern Lebanon’s Bekaa region, with Hezbollah fighters engaging the troops near the town of Nabi Sheet, AFP reported.
According to Hezbollah, around 15 Israeli helicopters infiltrated Lebanese airspace from the Syrian side of the border and landed forces in the region. Nabi Sheet is an area where the Iran-backed group maintains a strong presence, reports AFP.
The group said its fighters immediately confronted the helicopters and the troops on the ground using what it described as “appropriate weapons,” adding that the battle was ongoing.
Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency earlier reported intense fighting on the outskirts of Nabi Sheet, saying local forces were attempting to repel Israeli troops who had carried out a helicopter landing in the area.
Two Hezbollah officials in the eastern Bekaa region told AFP that one Israeli helicopter operating in the area was struck during the fighting.
The incident comes days after another Israeli commando operation in the same region. Overnight on Friday, Israeli special forces carried out a raid in and around Nabi Sheet in an attempt to locate the remains of Israeli airman Ron Arad, who has been missing since 1986.
That operation failed and resulted in heavy casualties, with 41 people killed during the incident.
In a statement, the resistance group said it detected “the infiltration of approximately 15 Israeli enemy helicopters” from the Syrian side of the border in eastern Lebanon, an area where Hezbollah holds sway.
Beirut Strikes
An explosion was heard Monday in the Hezbollah stronghold of Beirut’s southern suburbs, with smoke seen rising from the area, according to an AFP correspondent.
In a brief statement, the Israeli military said it had “struck infrastructure belonging to the Hezbollah organisation in Beirut.”
The area had been heavily targeted by Israeli strikes over the past week but had not been hit since Saturday.
The Israeli military had earlier warned residents of Beirut’s southern suburbs, as well as parts of southern Lebanon — both considered Hezbollah strongholds — to evacuate ahead of planned attacks against the armed group.
In southern Lebanon, Hezbollah said Monday that it targeted Israeli soldiers entering the border towns of Odaisseh and Aitaroun with artillery shells.
The group also said its fighters clashed with Israeli troops in Odaisseh.
Lebanon’s Health Minister Rakan Nassereddine said Sunday that Israeli strikes across Lebanon had killed 394 people over the past week, including 83 children and 42 women.
Israel’s military said two of its soldiers were killed in combat in southern Lebanon, marking the first fatalities among its forces since the latest offensive began on March 2.
