Israel has killed at least Lebanese soldiers who were carrying out a rescue operation in the country's south, the army announced Thursday.
"The Israeli enemy targeted Lebanese army personnel in the vicinity of Yater village, in the Bint Jbeil area of the south, while carrying out an operation to evacuate wounded, which led to the deaths of three martyrs, including an officer," an army statement said.
Lebanon's official National News Agency (NNA) reported an unspecified number of dead in a strike "on a house in Yater." It said paramedics were wounded when the Israeli air force struck a second time as they tried "to rescue the casualties."
The NNA also reported "a new wave of Israeli attacks on villages" in the southern districts of Tyre and Bint Jbeil overnight.
After nearly a year of genocidal war with Hamas in Gaza, Israel shifted its focus to Lebanon last month, vowing to secure its northern border under fire from Hezbollah. It ramped up airstrikes on the group's strongholds and sent in ground troops.
At least 11 Lebanese soldiers have been killed by Israeli fire since Sept. 23, according to army announcements.
Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin expressed "deep concern" over the strikes on the Lebanese army in a call with his Israeli counterpart Yoav Gallant on Wednesday.
He "emphasized the importance of taking all necessary measures to ensure the safety and security of the Lebanese Armed Forces" and U.N. peacekeepers, Pentagon spokesman Major General Pat Ryder said.
Thursday's strikes come as a donors' conference opens in Paris seeking hundreds of millions of dollars in aid for Lebanon.
Israeli strikes on the Syrian capital Damascus and a military site near the western city of Homs early Thursday killed one regime soldier and injured seven, the Syrian Defense Ministry said.
The attacks targeted the central Damascus neighbourhood of Kafr Sousa and a military site in the Homs countryside, the ministry said in a statement, adding the strikes caused "material damage" without elaborating.
Earlier in the day, Syrian state media said explosions were heard in Damascus after Israel struck a residential building in Kafr Sousa.
Israel typically does not comment on specific reports of strikes in Syria.
Israel has been carrying out strikes against Iranian-linked targets in Syria for years but it has ramped up raids since last year's Oct. 7 Hamas incursion.