Israel said its aircraft struck Hezbollah targets in Lebanon on Saturday and that one of its soldiers was hit by an anti-tank missile, in cross-border fighting that the group said killed six of its fighters.
With the frontier region seeing its worst violence in years as Israel wages war against Gaza's Hamas militants, the Israeli military said it traded fire with Hezbollah in at least four different areas along the Lebanese border.
The hostilities have forced residents on both sides to flee their homes. Israel's military says seven soldiers have been killed since Oct. 7. Hezbollah says 19 of its fighters have died, including the six on Saturday. The violence has also killed civilians and journalists, including one with Reuters.
A security source in Lebanon said one Hezbollah fighter was killed in the Lebanese area of Hula, opposite the Israeli community of Margaliot, which Israel said was the target of an anti-tank missile attack. The Israeli army said it fired back.
Hezbollah, which claimed attacks on Israeli military positions throughout Saturday, later said five other members were killed. Israel said its soldiers struck a cell attempting to launch anti-tank missiles toward the area of Shlomi, an Israeli town some 70 km from Margaliot.
An Israeli soldier was severely injured after being hit by an anti-tank missile near the Israeli town of Bar'am, the military said. Two other soldiers were lightly injured in the incident, it added, without saying if they were also hit by the missile.
Hezbollah and Israel's military have been trading fire at the frontier almost daily since Palestinian group Hamas launched a deadly attack on Israel on Oct. 7 and Israel retaliated with fierce air strikes on Gaza.
