Israel military says another soldier killed in south Lebanon

The Israeli army announced on Sunday the death in combat of a soldier in south Lebanon.

“Sergeant Moshe Yitzchak hacohen Katz, aged 22, from New Haven, Connecticut, a soldier of the 890th battalion, Paratroopers Brigade, fell during combat in southern Lebanon,” a military statement said.

Five Israeli soldiers have now been killed in fighting in south Lebanon since Hezbollah began launching rocket attacks against Israel on March 2 to avenge the killing of Iran’s supreme leader.

Israel intensified its war on Lebanon again on March 2, after Hezbollah responded to Israeli attacks for the first time in more than a year.

Hezbollah claimed the attack was retaliation for Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s assassination two days earlier.

A ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah had ostensibly been in effect since November 27, 2024, despite the United Nations counting more than 10,000 Israeli ceasefire violations in that period, and hundreds of Lebanese deaths.

After Hezbollah’s reply, Israel intensified its attacks on the south and declared its intention to occupy southern Lebanon. Israel also issued forced evacuation orders for areas of southern Lebanon, Beirut’s southern suburbs, and a few villages in the eastern Bekaa Valley, leading to a massive displacement crisis of at least 1.2 million people, according to the Lebanese government.

Now, Israel has also stated its intent to occupy southern Lebanon and set up a so-called security zone, while destroying more villages along the southern border.