Soldiers involved in a clash in Bint Jbeil, southern Lebanon, are disputing the IDF’s official account of the incident, saying the sequence of events differed from the military’s description.
The dispute follows an IDF announcement that a Hezbollah terrorist was killed Tuesday during a search of a building where a reservist was severely wounded last Thursday. During the operation, an Oketz combat dog was killed.
(Photo: IDF)
According to the IDF, reserve troops from the 679th Yiftah Brigade, operating under the command of the 91st Division, searched the building where the previous encounter occurred. During the searches, a Hezbollah terrorist inside the structure opened fire on the forces. The IDF said the troops immediately returned fire and that a female Oketz fighter killed the terrorist. No Israeli soldiers were wounded in the incident, aside from the death of the combat dog.
However, soldiers from the brigade told ynet that the events unfolded differently. According to their account, the forces, including Oketz troops, surrounded the compound and came under fire from inside the building. The gunfire killed the Oketz dog. During the exchange, the Oketz fighter fired two rounds toward the source of the shooting.
The soldiers said they were then evacuated from the area while under fire, after which brigade troops entered the compound and carried out searches. According to their account, about an hour later, after Oketz forces and their dogs had already left the area, troops identified a Hezbollah terrorist who surrendered and was taken alive for questioning. They said that later, a commander and a fighter from the brigade encountered another Hezbollah terrorist wearing a vest and carrying combat equipment, and opened fire at him.
The soldiers’ account contradicts the IDF statement, which said the Oketz fighter killed the Hezbollah terrorist during the encounter. The IDF had not provided a response to the soldiers’ claims at the time of publication.