Israel, Lebanon to hold more talks next week, US says
· RTE.ieRepresentatives of Israel and Lebanon will hold their third round of talks in Washington on 14 and 15 May, a US State Department official has said, as the US presses the two countries to reach a lasting peace agreement.
The announcement came a day after Israel's first strike on Beirut since Israel and Lebanon agreed to a fragile ceasefire in mid-April after the Trump administration gathered their ambassadors for rare direct talks.
The official did not say who would participate in the meeting. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that peace was achievable but required Lebanon's government to have the capability to fight Hezbollah.
Israel has repeatedly struck southern Lebanon, state media said, a day after it targeted a Hezbollah commander in its first strike on Beirut's southern suburbs since a ceasefire began.
The Israeli army said that yesterday's attack killed "the Commander of Hezbollah's 'Radwan Force' Unit", an elite unit within the Iran-backed armed group.
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said it showed that "no terrorist is immune".
"Last night, we eliminated, in the heart of Beirut, the commander of Hezbollah's Radwan force," Mr Netanyahu said, in a video released by his office.
"I say to our enemies in the clearest possible terms: no terrorist is immune. Anyone who threatens the State of Israel will die because of his actions."
The ceasefire began on 17 April, but combat has largely not stopped in southern Lebanon.
State media reported Israeli strikes across a number of southern towns and villages.
Israel's military issued fresh evacuation warnings to three villages north of the Litani River, outside the area occupied by troops following their ground invasion of the border area.
Some of the attacks, on the southern city of Nabatieh, targeted a shopping centre and residential buildings, state media said.
In the nearby village of Toul, two rescuers from the Hezbollah-affiliated Islamic Health Committee were wounded in an Israeli strike as they were dispatched following a previous attack, spokesperson Mahmoud Karaki said.
The team's ambulance was heavily damaged, he added.
The Israeli military said that an "explosive drone impact" wounded four soldiers - one severely - in southern Lebanon yesterday.
Despite the ceasefire, Hezbollah regularly claims attacks against Israeli forces occupying parts of southern Lebanon.
Since the war began on 2 March, Israeli strikes have killed more than 2,700 people in Lebanon.
The Israeli military says it has lost 17 soldiers and a contractor in southern Lebanon.
Israeli soldier pictured desecrating Virgin Mary statue in Lebanon
The Israeli military has said that it will investigate after a soldier was photographed placing a cigarette in the mouth of a statue of the Virgin Mary in southern Lebanon.
An image, appearing to show the soldier with his arm around the figure and holding a cigarette up to her mouth was widely shared on social media.
The Israeli military "views the incident with utmost severity and emphasises that the conduct of the soldier completely deviates from the values expected of its personnel," a statement said.
"The incident will be investigated, and command measures will be taken against the soldier in accordance with the findings."
An initial review showed the image was taken several weeks ago, the statement added.
It is not the first time that the Israeli military has come under fire in recent weeks over soldiers' conduct surrounding Christian statues in southern Lebanon.
Last month, two soldiers received 30 days of military detention and were removed from combat duty over the destruction of a statue of Jesus Christ in the village of Debl.
In that incident, a photo was shared online showing an Israeli soldier using a sledgehammer to strike the head of a statue of a crucified Jesus that had fallen off a cross.
The Israeli military said that it "respects freedom of religion and worship, as well as holy sites and religious symbols of all religions and communities".
It added that it had "no intention of harming civilian infrastructure, including religious buildings or religious symbols".