Three killed in clashes on Lebanon border

(Baonghean.vn) - Two Israeli soldiers and a Spanish-origin UN peacekeeper were killed when Hezbollah fired rockets at Israeli forces on the Lebanese border on January 28.

After Israeli forces were hit by Hezbollah rockets, they returned fire in southern Lebanon.

France has called for the United Nations Security Council to convene an emergency meeting in New York to discuss the war.

A senior UN official in Lebanon called for "maximum restraint to prevent further violence".

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held an emergency security meeting and said the attackers would "pay a heavy price".

Cross-border violence erupted when Israeli military vehicles were hit by anti-tank missiles at around 11:35 (09:35 GMT) on January 28 near Mt Dov, in the Shebaa Farms area, a strip of land straddling the borders of Israel, Lebanon and Syria.

Two Israeli soldiers were killed in the attack, which Hezbollah said was retaliation for an Israeli airstrike that killed six militants and an Iranian Revolutionary Guard general in the Syrian Golan Heights 10 days ago.

In addition to the two soldiers killed, seven other Israeli soldiers were injured.

The Israeli military said it was tracking rockets in the Mt Dov area. Photo: AFP

Just over an hour later, an Israeli military position on Mount Hermon came under mortar fire, forcing the force to seal off the position and evacuate civilians from the ski resort in the area.

The Israeli military said it would launch a combined air and ground attack on Hezbollah positions along the border.

According to Lebanese officials, at least 50 shells were fired at the villages of Majidiyeh, Abbasiyeh and Kfar Chouba.

Later, the UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon also announced that one of its staff was killed near the Shebaa Farms area.

The Spanish defence ministry confirmed that the dead employee was a Spanish national who had been at a location near the village of Ghajar.

UN special envoy to Lebanon Sigrid Kaag expressed "deep concern over the serious deterioration of the security situation" and "urgently called on all parties to refrain from any actions that could further destabilize the situation".

Huong Giang

According to BBC