(JNS) Two Israel Defense Forces soldiers were moderately wounded by anti-tank fire while fighting the Iranian-backed Hezbollah terrorist group in Southern Lebanon, the military said on Wednesday.
The injured troops were evacuated to an Israeli hospital and their families were informed, the statement added.
IDF soldiers have been deployed across Lebanon’s south as part of what Jerusalem describes as a “robust forward defensive posture” in response to Hezbollah’s decision on Monday to join the war on behalf of Tehran.
תיעוד מפעילות חטיבת ׳ההרים׳ (810) בהר דב הלבנוני לחיזוק ההגנה בצפון
כוחות חטיבת ׳ההרים׳ (810) בפיקוד אוגדה 210 פועלים במרחב הר דב שבדרום לבנון במספר מוקדים.
הכוחות פועלים באופן ממוקד במטרה לחשוף תשתיות אויב, למנוע את התעצמות ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה מעבר לגבול ועל מנת לחזק את קו… pic.twitter.com/4SBbIS2IrO
— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) March 5, 2026
The terrorist group “chose to attack Israel on behalf of the Iranian regime, and it will bear the consequences of its actions. The IDF will not allow harm to come to the residents of Israel and will continue to act to defend the State of Israel and its residents,” the military stated.
Soldiers from the 91st “Galilee” Division have been operating in the eastern part of Southern Lebanon; the 146th Reserve Division is deployed to the west; and the 210th “Bashan” Division is stationed in the Mount Dov area, the IDF said in a separate statement. The deployment consists of infantry, armored brigades and engineering soldiers operating together, it added.
Soldiers are tasked with providing an additional layer of defense for the residents of northern Israel, preventing “any emerging threats,” and stopping any attempt to infiltrate the Jewish state.
The decision to bolster the military’s presence in Lebanon came amid fears that the Radwan Force—the elite Hezbollah terrorists trained to invade the Jewish state—could attack, Israel’s Channel 12 Newsbroadcaster cited security sources as saying on Wednesday night.
Soldiers of the Israel Defense Forces’ 401st “Iron Tracks” Brigade operate in Southern Lebanon, March 4, 2026. Credit: IDF Spokesperson’s Unit.
The expanded ground operations came after the IDF on Wednesday ordered all Lebanese to evacuate to north of the Litani River.
“The activities of the Hezbollah terrorist organization are forcing the Israel Defense Forces to act against it with force. The IDF does not intend to harm you,” said Col. Avichay Adraee from the Arab Media Branch in the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit, in a notice posted to X.
“Any home used by Hezbollah for military purposes may be subject to targeting,” he said. “Any movement southward may endanger your life.”
In parallel with ground operations, the IDF hit “dozens” of Hezbollah targets from the air, the military said in an overnight statement on Wednesday.
Among the targets that were struck were “numerous Hezbollah rocket and missile launch sites located south of the Litani River,” including a factory for producing unmanned aerial vehicles and attack drones.
במהלך הלילה: צה״ל תקף בביירות מפקדות נוספות בשימוש ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה
צה”ל תקף לפני זמן קצר בביירות, והשלים גל תקיפות נגד מספר מפקדות של ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה.
בין המפקדות שהותקפו, מפקדה בשימוש היחידה האווירית של ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה.
המפקדות שהותקפו יועדו לשמש את ארגון… pic.twitter.com/mT6fxz4z04
— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) March 5, 2026
In Beirut
In Beirut, the Israeli Air Force carried out an overnight “wave of intelligence-based strikes against several command centers” of the Iranian-backed terrorist army, the IDF said on Thursday morning.
In the early hours of Monday morning, Hezbollah began firing missiles at northern Israel in retaliation for the targeted killing in Tehran of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. He was killed by an Israeli airstrike targeting his Tehran compound in the first hours of the war on Feb. 28.
The Tehran-backed terrorist army confirmed in an initial statement on March 2 that it had decided to target the Jewish state to avenge “the blood of the supreme leader of the Muslims, Ali Khamenei.”
However, Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem, in his first speech since joining the war on Wednesday, claimed that its rocket assaults on Israel were “not related to any other battle.”
“We are facing aggression,” he claimed. “Our choice is to confront it until the ultimate sacrifice, and we will not surrender.”
Qassem added: “For us, this is an existential defense.
“The resistance’s main goal is to stop the Israeli-American aggression and force its withdrawal from the Lebanese territories,” he declared.
Smoke rises in Southern Lebanon following Israel Defense Forces airstrikes, as seen from the Israeli side of the border, March 3, 2026. Photo by Ayal Margolin/Flash90.
Hezbollah continued to fire rockets and send explosive UAVs at Israel on Wednesday, setting off waves of air-raid sirens but causing no major casualties as the nation’s air defenses and shelters limited the impact.
On Wednesday morning, the terrorist group targeted the Tel Aviv area with rockets for the first time since the US-brokered ceasefire agreement between Israel and Beirut went into effect on Nov. 27, 2024.
Hours earlier, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had warned that Beirut “must understand that Hezbollah is dragging them into a war that is not theirs,” urging Lebanon to look out for itself “as soon as possible.”
Hezbollah is doing this “only because of the death of that mass murderer who has nothing to do with them,” the premier said.
Netanyahu in his remarks reiterated that Hezbollah “made a very big mistake” when it opened another front against Israel, warning, “We’ve already responded forcefully and will respond with even greater force.”
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