Soldier's Death
A second French soldier, Corporal Anicet Girardin, died on Wednesday from wounds sustained in an April 18 ambush against UN peacekeepers in Lebanon. President Emmanuel Macron blamed Hezbollah for the attack. Girardin, a member of a specialist dog-handling unit, was part of a mission "to clear a route booby-trapped with an improvised explosive device," according to Armies Minister Catherine Vautrin. Staff sergeant Florian Montorio was killed in the same ambush on Saturday. Macron posted on X that Girardin, who was badly wounded by Hezbollah fighters, died of his wounds after being brought home from Lebanon on Tuesday.
Ambush Details
Vautrin stated that Girardin "came under sustained fire from concealed Hezbollah fighters at very close range" and "moved to aid his section leader who had just fallen, only to be seriously hit in turn." The UN Interim Force in Lebanon, UNIFIL, stated that initial assessments indicated the fire came from non-state actors, allegedly Hezbollah, but the Iran-aligned group denied involvement.
Journalist Death
Separately, Israeli attacks killed five people in southern Lebanon, including journalist Amal Khalil, according to Lebanon's National News Agency. Khalil worked for the local media outlet Al Akhbar. An initial Israeli strike hit a car in at-Tiri, killing two people inside, according to the NNA. Israel's military said it struck two vehicles in southern Lebanon that departed from a military structure used by Hezbollah.
Attack on Journalists
Al Jazeera's Heidi Pett reported that Khalil and Zeinab Faraj had gone to the site of an earlier Israeli drone strike on a car when the attack occurred. Faraj was taken to a local hospital and was reportedly in "very serious condition and will be requiring surgery." Lebanon's Ministry of Health claimed Israel "pursued" the journalists by "targeting" the building where they took shelter. The NNA reported that an Israeli strike targeted the main road linking the town with Haddatha "to prevent ambulance teams from reaching the two journalists." Lebanon's Information Minister Paul Morcos condemned the attack, holding Israel fully responsible for their safety.
Israeli Response
The Israeli military stated that it "does not target journalists and acts to mitigate harm to them" and denied preventing rescue services from reaching the site of the attack in at-Tiri. Last month, an Israeli attack on a clearly marked press vehicle killed three journalists in southern Lebanon. The Lebanese armed group said it attacked an Israeli artillery position in southern Lebanon with a drone, in response to what it said was an Israeli violation of the ceasefire.
Statue Incident
Footage of an Israeli soldier attacking a Christian statue depicting the crucifixion of Jesus in southern Lebanon with a sledgehammer circulated on social media. The Israeli military confirmed the authenticity of the photo and said its Northern Command would investigate the incident. The military removed two soldiers from combat duty and gave them 30 days of military detention for damaging a Christian religious symbol and taking a photo of the act in the southern Lebanese village of Debl. The military also posted a photo of what it said was a replacement statue that its forces put up. Six other soldiers have been summoned for questioning.
Rising Tensions
The latest attacks come as Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said Beirut would seek an extension of the 10-day, United States-mediated ceasefire, which is set to expire on Sunday. Hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel reignited on March 2 after Israel killed Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Israel has seized a belt of territory at the border where its troops remain.
