Four Israeli soldiers were killed and nearly 60 others wounded on Sunday in a drone strike carried out by Hezbollah on an Israeli military base in Binyamina, authorities said. The Lebanon-based militant group claimed responsibility for the attack, which marks one of the deadliest incidents involving Hezbollah since Israel launched a ground invasion into Lebanon earlier this month.
Hezbollah said it launched a “swarm of drones” targeting Israel’s Golani Brigade stationed at the base, approximately 35 miles north of Tel Aviv. The group also claimed to have used new drone models that managed to bypass Israeli defense systems. The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed the attack, reporting that one of the drones had been intercepted, but another successfully struck the base.
Israel’s emergency medical service, Magen David Adom, reported that 61 people were injured in the attack, including three in critical condition. Military officials said they were working to assess the damage and had dispatched additional troops to secure the area.
Hezbollah has also recently fired artillery rounds and rockets at Israeli positions in southern Lebanon, and the group stated it is retaliating for recent Israeli strikes that killed 22 people in Beirut.
The Israeli military has yet to release specific details regarding the base strike but confirmed that it was closely monitoring Hezbollah’s increased use of drones and rocket fire.
The U.S. announced plans to send a new air-defense system to Israel to enhance protection against missile attacks. The Pentagon confirmed the deployment of a Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system to bolster Israel’s defenses.
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