Israel announces death of commando, sergeant in southern Lebanon

The Israeli army said Wednesday that a commando from the Maglan Unit was killed during a battle in southern Lebanon.

“Sergeant First Class Eitan Ben Ami, aged 22, a soldier in Maglan’s Reservist Unit, Commando Brigade, fell during combat in southern Lebanon,” it said in a statement.

The Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper reported that the soldier was killed when a house he was inside collapsed, but no further details were provided.

In a separate incident, Sergeant Gur Kahati, aged 20, from Nir Banim, a soldier in the 13th Battalion of the Golani Brigade, was also killed during combat in southern Lebanon.

The death of Ben Ami brings the number of Israeli military fatalities to 45 since a ground offensive in southern Lebanon began in late September, according to the newspaper.

The Israeli military reports that 802 soldiers and officers have been killed since its war began in the Gaza Strip, including 377 fatalities since an Oct. 27, 2023, ground invasion of the enclave.

Israel has engaged in cross-border warfare with Lebanon, launching an air campaign in late September against what it claims are Hezbollah targets.

More than 3,500 people have been killed by Israeli attacks in Lebanon, with nearly 15,000 injured and more than 1 million displaced since last October, according to Lebanese health authorities.

Tel Aviv expanded the conflict by launching a ground assault into southern Lebanon on Oct. 1.