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Israel shells southern Lebanon in retaliation to border blast

07 October 2014 19:03 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. Israel shelled the east sector of southern Lebanon on Tuesday afternoon in response to a roadside bomb attack near the border that injured three Israeli soldiers, a security source told Xinhua, APA reports.

Earlier on Tuesday an Israeli military spokeswoman said three soldiers were injured by a detonated explosive when on a routine patrol along the Israel-Lebanon border. Initial investigation indicates that the bomb was planted to attack Israeli forces operating in the area.

According to the Lebanese source, the bomb targeted an Israeli Merkava tank near their post in Roueisset el Alam in the occupied Shebaa farms.

Israeli forces immediately responded with dozens of shells targeting Shebaa, Kfarshouba and al Hebbarieh in southern Lebanon, which was accompanied by drones and helicopters flying over the region.

About 50 artillery shells had been recorded at the time the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) started calling Lebanon and Israel to contain the situation and avoid any further escalation, the source said, adding that no casualty has been reported in the shelling, though both sides are still on high alert along the borders.

Earlier on Sunday the Lebanese army said that a soldier was injured by Israeli fire across the borders, while UNIFIL condemned the incident and said it's "a clear violation of resolution 1701" that ended a 33-day devastating war between Israel and Hezbollah in July 2006.