Hezbollah says it targeted Israeli tank after 48-hour undeclared pause

ISTANBUL

Hezbollah said Tuesday it targeted an Israeli army's tank in an aerial attack in what looks like a resumption of fighting with Israel after 48 hours of an undeclared pause.

The Lebanese group said fighters attacked a Merkava tank inside the army's Hadab Yarin site with a combat drone and achieved a direct hit.

Israeli public broadcaster KAN reported earlier that a rocket was fired toward the Metula settlement in northern Israel that set off sirens in the area and caused a fire in an agricultural section of the settlement.

KAN noted that it was the first rocket incident from Lebanon in 48 hours.

The attacks come in the light of a shuttle visit by senior adviser to the US president, Amos Hochstein, to Israel on Monday, and to Lebanon on Tuesday in a bid to ease tension between the two sides.

Since the war in the Gaza Strip began in October 2023, there have been daily exchanges of fire, and thousands of civilians have been displaced on both sides of the border.

Tensions have risen along Lebanon's border with Israel amid cross-border attacks between Hezbollah and Israeli forces as Tel Aviv presses ahead with its deadly offensive on Gaza, which has killed more than 37,300 victims since following an attack by the Palestinian resistance group, Hamas.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar