Hezbollah attacks spark firefight near Beaufort Castle

Hezbollah forces launched a wave of attacks targeting Israeli troops and military vehicles near the historic Beaufort Castle in southern Lebanon, highlighting the extreme volatility on the ground despite international efforts to halt the fighting.

The Lebanese group claimed to have carried out 25 distinct operations over a 24-hour window, deploying drones, rockets, anti-tank weapons, and a "precision missile" strike, News.Az reports, citing Anadolu Agency.

Near the town of Ghandouriyeh, Hezbollah fighters detonated explosive devices against advancing Israeli forces. According to statements from the group, the blast caused casualties, prompting Israeli forces to evacuate their wounded under heavy smoke screens before launching retaliatory airstrikes and artillery shelling across the area.

The Israeli military confirmed that a tank commander from the 75th Battalion was killed in southern Lebanon, raising the Israeli military death toll to 28 since the outbreak of the Iran war in late February.

The surge in violence comes at a critical diplomatic juncture:

A New Deal: Just days ago, Lebanon and Israel agreed to renew a fragile ceasefire and establish "pilot zones."

The Plan: Under the U.S.-mediated agreement, the Lebanese army is supposed to take exclusive territorial control of these zones, pushing out all non-state actors.

The Reality: The deal follows weeks of near-daily Israeli strikes that have killed nearly 3,500 people in Lebanon since March 2, continually threatening a nominal ceasefire that was recently extended into early July.

News.Az 

By Aysel Mammadzada