The IDF announced that a reserve soldier from the 679th Armored Brigade was severely wounded Thursday at around 6 p.m. during an exchange of fire with a Hezbollah operative in Bint Jbeil, southern Lebanon. Israeli forces shelled the building with tank rounds and the Air Force struck nearby targets; as of Friday morning, troops were still searching for the gunman, whose fate remains unknown.
The IDF confirmed Friday morning that a reserve soldier from the 679th Armored Brigade was severely wounded in a direct exchange of fire with a Hezbollah operative inside a building in Bint Jbeil on Thursday evening. As of 11:09 Jerusalem, troops were continuing to search the area for the gunman, whose fate remains unknown, according to the military's latest update.
The story first broke at 05:56 Jerusalem on Friday, when the IDF initially confirmed the injury and family notification. As The Zioneer reported at that time, the soldier was wounded in a close-quarters encounter; two other soldiers sustained very light injuries. The military identified the operative as a Hezbollah gunman, and the Israeli Air Force struck the building after the clash. Later that morning, at 08:09 Jerusalem, The Zioneer published a bulletin summarizing the IDF's announcement, noting that the gunman was still at large. The incident marked the third severe wounding of a reserve soldier in the Bint Jbeil area this week, according to the IDF.
The clash occurred amid a broader pattern of Hezbollah ceasefire violations. As The Zioneer reported on Friday June 26, four soldiers were wounded in a grenade attack by a Hezbollah operative near Beit Yahoun, and the assailant was killed. On Friday June 19, five soldiers were wounded by a Hezbollah explosive drone strike on Commando Brigade forces near Kfar Tebnit, with one officer seriously wounded.
The gunman's fate remains unknown, and the IDF has not confirmed whether he was killed or escaped. Searches in the area are ongoing.
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