The IDF announced Friday morning that Lt. Col. Dor Gedalia Ben Simhon, 32, commander of the 52nd Battalion of the 401st Armored Brigade, was killed along with three soldiers around 00:20 overnight when Hezbollah struck their tank near the village of Tebnit in southern Lebanon. The exact munition — a suspected explosive drone or anti-tank missile — remains under investigation, according to an IDF preliminary probe reported by Israeli media. Three additional soldiers died alongside him; their names have not yet been cleared for publication. The IDF subsequently launched extensive airstrikes on Hezbollah infrastructure in the Nabatieh area.
The IDF cleared for publication Friday morning that four soldiers from the 52nd Battalion (401st Armored Brigade) operating under the Givati Brigade's command were killed in an overnight Hezbollah attack in southern Lebanon — one of the deadliest single incidents for Israeli forces on the northern front since the ceasefire declaration.
The fallen commander, Lt. Col. Dor Gedalia Ben Simhon, 32, of Kibbutz Beit Hashita, was married and father to two daughters. He assumed command of the battalion on April 20, about a week after his predecessor was severely wounded in southern Lebanon two months ago, the IDF said.
According to an IDF preliminary probe reported by Israeli media, a suspicious munition struck the battalion commander's tank around 00:20 near the village of Tebnit. The probe noted it cannot yet be definitively determined whether the munition was an explosive drone or an anti-tank missile. Three additional soldiers in the tank were killed; their names remain under a publication ban pending family notifications.
In response, the IDF conducted extensive airstrikes through the night and Friday morning against Hezbollah infrastructure and operatives in the Nabatieh area and other sectors of southern Lebanon. Local Lebanese reports cited by Israeli outlets put the toll at 16 killed and 33 wounded from the strikes, with the numbers expected to rise.
The attack marks a significant violation of the ceasefire framework with Hezbollah. In a related development, according to Israeli media citing a Swiss Foreign Ministry statement, the scheduled face-to-face talks between the US and Iran in Switzerland Friday were canceled against the backdrop of the fighting in southern Lebanon.
8 developments
- DevelopingTwo IDF Soldiers Killed, Four Wounded in Southern Lebanon Incidents
- StrongIDF details: Four Givati soldiers wounded in first drone blast, fifth hit during medical evacuation
- DevelopingIDF Givati Recon Unit Eliminates Two Hezbollah Drone Operators in Southern Lebanon
- DevelopingHezbollah confirms IDF ground forces at edge of Tebnit village, near Nabatieh
Source and signal
- Internal intake