(BEIRUT, LEBANON) — Hezbollah claimed responsibility on Tuesday for planting a bomb that wounded two Israeli soldiers on the southern border of Lebanon, according to a statement released by the group.
An explosive device targeting an Israeli patrol in the Shebaa Farms was set off at 2:22 p.m. on Tuesday, said the statement.
The brigade responsible for setting off the device was named after 25-year-old Ali Hasan Haidar, a Hezbollah explosives expert, who was killed while attempting to dismantle four Israeli devices planted on Hezbollah’s telecommunications network in Adloun, south Lebanon last month.
An Israel army spokeswoman confirmed that two troops were wounded when an explosive device was detonated during activities by the Israeli army near the Lebanese border.
The attack prompted a retaliation by Israel, which fired artillery shells at a number of positions in Shebaa, the nearby Kfarshouba Hills, and al-Saddaneh area.
The Lebanese army and the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon went on alert in the area following the unrest.
Al-Manar reports that Israeli drones are hovering over the area of the blast.
UNIFIL later issued a statement saying that “at approximately 14:30 p.m., the Israel Defense Forces confirmed that two IDF soldiers were wounded at an Israeli position in the Shebaa area as a result of an improvised explosive device.”
UNIFIL is launching an investigation to determine the facts and circumstances of the incident.
“This incident is a violation of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701. Such actions are in contravention of our objectives and efforts to reduce tensions and establish a stable and secure environment in southern Lebanon,” it said.
The blast comes just two days after Israeli soldiers fired at a Lebanese Army post and wounded one soldier in the same area.