The IDF said Wednesday it is further investigating the killing of a Hezbollah operative in Bint Jbeil, after reservists on the ground claimed they — not a female Oketz dog handler — shot the gunman. The military acknowledged possible 'good-faith human error' and pledged to present findings transparently.
The IDF announced Wednesday that it is opening a formal investigation into the killing of a Hezbollah operative in Bint Jbeil, after reservists contradicted the military's initial account of the incident. At 10:56 Jerusalem, soldiers from the 679th Armored Brigade and Battalion 8112 told Kan News that the terrorist was killed by their troops following a standoff, and that the Oketz dog was killed by the terrorist's fire — not that the female handler fired the fatal shot. In a statement at 11:09, the IDF acknowledged the possibility of "good-faith human error" and pledged to present findings transparently.
The sequence of reports began at 07:06 Jerusalem, when the IDF first reported that troops from the 679th Brigade had eliminated a Hezbollah operative who opened fire during searches of a building in Bint Jbeil. Subsequent versions of the IDF's account specified that an Oketz military working dog was killed and that the handler, a female combat soldier, returned fire and killed the gunman. The building was identified as the same site where a reserve soldier was severely wounded in a clash last Thursday. The soldiers' on-the-ground account, published at 10:56, introduced a competing narrative — that the operative was shot by Battalion 8112 troops after he reached for his weapon.
As The Zioneer reported on June 4, Hezbollah mortar fire struck a UNIFIL post, killing a UN soldier, underscoring the threat to peacekeeping forces in the region. The Bint Jbeil operation is part of continued Israeli activity in southern Lebanon since the ceasefire, amid ongoing Hezbollah violations.
The IDF investigation is in its early stages. The identity of the soldier who fired the fatal shot remains unclear, and the soldiers' account has not been independently verified. The military has said it will share its findings.
11 developments
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- StrongIDF: Lebanese soldier killed by Hezbollah explosive, forces not in the area
- ConfirmedIDF soldier killed in clash with Hezbollah operative in southern Lebanon
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