Two Israeli soldiers killed in south Lebanon, first military loss since June truce

Two Israeli soldiers were killed and four others wounded in southern Lebanon on Thursday, the Israeli military confirmed, marking the first Israeli military fatalities since a fragile ceasefire between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah militia took hold in June.

Lebanon's National News Agency reported that overnight Israeli air strikes on the southern towns of Burj Shemali and Al-Mansouri wounded several people, as tensions along the border flared once again.

Tensions rise amid talks in Rome

The Israeli military had carried out several air strikes across southern Lebanon on Wednesday, which the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said were in response to ceasefire violations by Hezbollah. Israel had also urged residents of the village of Mansouri to evacuate the area — a rare advance alert issued ahead of a strike on Lebanese territory. Hezbollah has not yet issued any official response to the developments.

Crucially, the flare-up comes even as talks between Lebanon and Israel continue in Rome, aimed at discussing the implementation of the 26 June agreement. Under that deal, Israeli forces are to withdraw from occupied areas of southern Lebanon, handing control to the Lebanese army, while Hezbollah disarms in return. Efforts to enforce the agreement are ongoing, but the latest incident has raised fresh questions over whether it can succeed.

Hezbollah fired rockets during the Iran war

In the final week of February, the United States and Israel struck Iran in West Asia. Iran-backed Hezbollah responded by firing rockets at Israel on 2 March. A ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah has largely held since 20 June, though Israeli forces continue to occupy parts of southern Lebanon and periodically carry out air strikes and shelling there. Thursday's deaths and injuries suggest that, despite the truce, the situation along the border remains far from fully settled, with tensions still simmering in the region.