The incident marked first time since the 1970s, that the militaries of
Israel and Lebanon had exchanged ground fire.
Officials said the U.S.-trained Lebanese Army opened with light weapons
fire and later rocket-propelled grenades toward the Israeli force, Middle East Newsline reported. Israeli
troops fired back and an Air Force helicopter fired at the Lebanese Army
battalion command center in Taibeh. Several Lebanese armored combat vehicles
were damaged.
Reports from the area said three Lebanese soldiers and a journalist were
killed. Lebanon has confirmed two of the reported casualties.
Israel's military reported the killing of a battalion commander,
identified as Lt. Col. Dov Harari, by Lebanese Army sniper fire. An Israel
Army platoon commander, Capt. Ezra Lakia, was reported to have been
critically injured.
"This was a deliberate ambush," Israeli Maj. Gen. Gadi Eizenkot, head of
Northern Command, said. "The Lebanese Army used sniper shooting, and hit two
commanders of our forces. It is our understanding that this was an initiated
and provocative action by the Lebanese Army, which executed the shots fired
towards the force within territory of the state of Israel with no
provocation from our territory."
The clash, which sparked an alert throughout northern Israel, took place
amid the deployment of at least 1,500 Lebanese Army troops along the Israeli
border. The brigade deployment was designed to enable UNIFIL operations in
Shi'ite villages in the south dominated by Hizbullah.
"The IDF holds the LAF responsible for the incident that disrupted the
calm in the region, and its consequences," the Israeli military said.
The Lebanese Army said Israeli troops crossed the Lebanese border and
began uprooting a tree, later described as an Israeli attempt to clear the
security fence between the two countries. The Army said it fired warning
shots, followed by mortar and rocket fire by both sides.
"UNIFIL established, however, that the trees being cut by the Israeli
Army are located south of the Blue Line on the Israeli side," UNIFIL
military spokesman Lt. Col. Naresh Bhatt said.
On Aug. 4, the Israel Army continued to clear trees and bushes from the
border area with Lebanon. The Lebanese military did not respond.
"We are continuing to operate," Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak
said. "It will not be legitimate if they try to disrupt today, and we will
have to respond."
Over the last year, Israel has warned the United States against
providing offensive systems to the Lebanese Army. The government of Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has argued that the Lebanese military was
dominated by the Iranian-sponsored Hizbullah.
In 2010, the administration of President Barack Obama accelerated U.S.
military aid to Lebanon. In April, the Lebanese Army received the first
heavy weapons in the form of anti-tank missiles from Washington. It was not
known if the Lebanese Army force used U.S.-origin weapons during the clash.
"[There is] a necessity to repel any Israeli attempt of aggression no
matter what the circumstances," Lebanese President Michel Suleiman said.
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