By Abdulsalam Fayez
ISTANBUL (AA) - Hezbollah said Tuesday that it downed an Israeli drone above the southern Lebanese town of Jibchit, setting it on fire.
The Lebanese group said in a statement that its air defense units successfully shot down a Hermes 450 Israeli drone with a surface-to-air missile.
The group added in a series of follow-up statements that it launched a rocket barrage on the She'ar Yashuv settlement in northern Israel and targeted two Israeli Merkava tanks near the Misgav Am area and on the outskirts of Taybeh in southern Lebanon with guided missiles, resulting in the destruction to both tanks and casualties for their crews.
The Israeli military confirmed that one of its drones crashed in southern Lebanon after the announcement by Hezbollah.
The crash took place above the town of Jibchit and the army said it has opened an investigation to determine the exact circumstances of the incident.
Hezbollah conducted 33 operations against Israeli forces across various combat fronts Tuesday, according to statements monitored by Anadolu.
It comes after the group declared last Thursday the beginning of a “new phase of escalation” against Israeli forces, which it said would be revealed in the coming days.
Israel has mounted a huge air campaign in Lebanon since last month against what it claims are Hezbollah targets in an escalation from a year of cross-border warfare between Israel and the Lebanese group since the start of Israel’s brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip.
At least 2,546 people have been killed and more than 11,860 injured in Israeli attacks since last October, according to Lebanese health authorities.
Israel expanded the conflict this year by launching a ground assault into southern Lebanon on Oct. 1.
*Writing by Mohammad Sio