2 soldiers killed in Lebanon in the first Israeli deaths since June
truce with Hezbollah
[August 06, 2026]
By ABBY SEWELL and KORAL SAEED
BEIRUT (AP) — The Israeli military said Thursday that two of its
soldiers were killed in an explosion in southern Lebanon in the first
Israeli deaths since the implementation of a shaky truce between Israel
and the Iran-backed Lebanese militant group Hezbollah in June.
Four other soldiers were seriously wounded, the military said. The
deaths had been reported by Israeli media a day earlier. An Israeli
military official, who spoke on condition of anonymity in accordance
with the army's policy, said that “an explosion was detonated” when the
soldiers entered a site in the village of Majdal Zoun and that the
nature of the explosive was under review.
The Israeli army launched strikes Wednesday in southern Lebanon in
response to what it described as Hezbollah’s violation of the ceasefire
and issued a call for residents of the village of Mansouri to flee — the
first such warning Israel has issued in Lebanon for weeks.
There was no immediate statement from Hezbollah.
The escalation came as Lebanese and Israeli negotiators met in Rome to
discuss implementation of a June 26 deal under which Israeli forces are
supposed to withdraw from areas they occupy in southern Lebanon and
allow the Lebanese army to take control, in exchange for Hezbollah’s
disarmament,
Wednesday’s talks ended early due to the escalation on the ground. The
talks were set to resume Thursday.
Lebanon’s Health Ministry said one person was killed and 12 wounded in
an Israeli strike in the town of Tebnine Wednesday. The state-run
National News Agency reported more people wounded in overnight strikes
on the village of Burj al-Shemali, but the number was not clear.
Artillery shelling also targeted the areas of Mansouri and Majdal Zoun,
it said.
The latest Israel-Hezbollah war erupted on March 2, when Hezbollah fired
rockets across the border two days after the U.S. and Israel launched
their attacks on Iran. More than 4,000 people have been killed by
Israeli strikes in Lebanon since then, including hundreds of civilians.
About 40 soldiers and three civilians - including a military contractor
- have been killed on the Israeli side.
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A Lebanese family takes shade under the damaged solar panels of
their destroyed house in the village of Zawtar al-Gharbieh, south
Lebanon, Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)
A shaky truce between Israel and Hezbollah has largely held since
June 20, but Israeli forces have continued to occupy swaths of
southern Lebanon and to carry out periodic airstrikes and shelling.
The talks in Rome have focused on implementation of “pilot zones”
where Israeli forces would withdraw and the Lebanese army would take
control. Implementation began last month with an initial pilot zone
in an area that wasn’t occupied by Israeli forces but had previously
sustained Israeli fire.
The Lebanese army entered the town of Zawtar al-Gharbieh and some
civilians returned, although many came only to find their homes
destroyed and left again.
A diplomat familiar with the negotiations who spoke on condition of
anonymity because they were not authorized to comment publicly said
earlier this week that Lebanon had asked for the next pilot zone to
be either in the town of Khiam or Bint Jbeil. Both areas saw heavy
fighting in the latest Israel-Hezbollah war and are currently
occupied by Israeli forces.
But U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa suggested ahead of the
three-day talks that no new pilot zones would be immediately
implemented, saying that “moving too quickly risks jeopardizing the
very civilians this process is meant to protect.”
Hezbollah was opposed to the direct Lebanon-Israel talks and was not
a party to the deal. The group has accused the Lebanese government
of making too many concessions without guaranteeing an Israeli
withdrawal.
___
Saeed reported from Herzliya, Israel. AP reporter Maria Grazia Murru
in Rome contributed to this report.
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