An Israeli power company worker was killed by an anti-tank missile strike across the Lebanese border, his employer said Monday as tensions flared between Israel and the Iran-backed militia Hezbollah.
Shalom Abudi, 56, was killed on Sunday night “by Hezbollah fire during his work in the Dovev area” — just half a mile (800 meters) from the frontier with Lebanon — according to the Israel Electric Corporation.
Since Hamas’ October 7 attack on Israel from the Gaza Strip, Lebanon’s southern border has seen intensifying tit-for-tat ex-changes, mainly between Israel and Hezbollah, an ally of the Palestinian group, stoking fears of a broader conflagration.
Israeli fire, some on targets in Syria, has killed at least 70 Hezbollah fighters since hostilities broke out, according to an AFP tally based on statements from the group.
At least 12 other combatants have also been killed, as well as 11 civilians in Lebanon including a Reuters journalist.
At least six soldiers and two civilians have been killed on the Israeli side.
Israeli officials say Hamas militants killed about 1,200 people and took some 240 hostage in the October 7 attacks that triggered the war.
Israel’s subsequent aerial and ground offensive has killed more than 11,000 people in Gaza, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run Palestinian territory.
Source: Al Arabiya