Two Lebanese Soldiers Kiled in Israeli Drone Blast Amid Ongoing Aggression
TEHRAN (Tasnim) - Two Lebanese soldiers were killed and two others wounded on Thursday when an Israeli drone exploded in southern Lebanon.
According to the Lebanese army, the drone had crashed in the Naqoura area near the border with occupied Palestine. The blast occurred as troops were inspecting the site.
President Joseph Aoun offered condolences to the victims’ families, stressing that the army “is paying, in blood, the price of preserving stability in the south.”
The incident comes as the Israeli regime continues near-daily strikes on Lebanese territory despite a ceasefire with Hezbollah reached last November.
It also coincides with a United Nations Security Council decision to gradually wind down the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL). The mission’s mandate was extended until the end of 2026, after which the UN announced an “orderly and safe drawdown and withdrawal” over the following year.
The resolution stated that Lebanon’s national army should be the sole security provider in the south. However, analysts say this remains unachievable so long as Israel maintains its occupation and aggression. Both Tel Aviv and Washington have been lobbying to end UNIFIL’s presence.
“The process of withdrawing its 10,800 military and civilian personnel and equipment would start immediately in consultation with the Lebanese government, to be completed within a year,” Al Jazeera’s Zeina Khodr reported.
Meanwhile, the US has been exerting pressure on Lebanon to push Hezbollah toward disarmament — a demand the resistance movement firmly rejects. Hezbollah insists that giving up its weapons would only embolden Israel and leave Lebanon defenceless.
US envoy Tom Barrack, visiting Beirut on Tuesday, claimed that Lebanon would soon present a plan to encourage Hezbollah to disarm, while Israel would submit its own framework for military withdrawal. He added that the approach would not involve force but rely on political pressure.
Responding a day earlier, Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem made clear that any discussion on a national defence strategy must begin with Israel halting its aggression.
“If you truly want sovereignty, then stop the aggression. We will not abandon the weapons that honour us nor the weapons that protect us from our enemy,” Qassem declared.
