BEIRUT, Lebanon — Four Israeli soldiers were killed in a Hezbollah drone strike at a military base in northern Israel on Sunday, as tensions escalated with intensified fighting across the Israel-Lebanon border.
The attack, targeting a training camp in Binyamina near Haifa, was the deadliest strike on an Israeli military site since Israel ramped up operations against Hezbollah in Lebanon starting in late September.
More than 60 people were also reported injured in the assault, according to Israeli emergency services.
Meanwhile, Gaza authorities reported that the death toll from an Israeli strike on a school sheltering displaced civilians had risen to 15. In a separate overnight airstrike on a hospital, four additional casualties were confirmed.
As skirmishes continue between Israeli and Hezbollah forces in southern Lebanon, United Nations peacekeepers have also found themselves caught in the crossfire.
Israeli forces allegedly breached a UN position, prompting the UN peacekeeping force to issue a statement accusing Israeli troops of forcibly entering their outpost.
Late Sunday, Hezbollah claimed responsibility for the drone strike on the Binyamina base, located about 30 kilometers south of Haifa, as retaliation for recent Israeli airstrikes, including one that left 22 people dead in Beirut.
In a warning to Israel, Hezbollah stated, “What happened in southern Haifa is only a glimpse of what awaits if the aggression continues against our people.”
Hezbollah’s drone and rocket attacks have become more frequent over the past year, intensifying after the group joined forces with Hamas militants in Gaza.
Israel’s air defenses have intercepted many projectiles, though the scale and frequency of Hezbollah’s attacks have increased since September.
Israeli forces continue to expand their airstrikes, focusing on areas beyond Hezbollah’s usual strongholds. In response, Hezbollah forces have engaged Israeli troops attempting to infiltrate villages near the border.
UN peacekeepers have criticized the Israeli military for violating their positions, reporting an incident in which two Israeli tanks destroyed the gate of a UN outpost before retreating.
The incident is part of a series of confrontations between the Israeli military and UN forces in the region.
Elsewhere, Israeli airstrikes on southern Lebanon killed five people, and Lebanon’s military reported injuries to three of its soldiers in the Marjayoun area following Israeli attacks.
In Gaza, Israeli shelling of a school-turned-shelter claimed the lives of 15 people, including women and children, adding to the mounting civilian toll in the ongoing conflict.
French President Emmanuel Macron has called on Iran to support efforts toward de-escalation, as international concerns over the rising death toll grow.