The Media Line: 4 IDF Soldiers Wounded in Southern Lebanon as Israel-Lebanon Talks Continue  

4 IDF Soldiers Wounded in Southern Lebanon as Israel-Lebanon Talks Continue  

By The Media Line Staff  

An Israel Defense Forces (IDF) combat officer was moderately wounded, and another combat officer and two additional soldiers sustained light injuries during an encounter with a terrorist in Beit Yahoun in southern Lebanon, as US-mediated negotiations between Israel and Lebanon were extended another day without a breakthrough.   

The IDF Spokesperson said a member of an armed group threw a grenade at the soldiers before being eliminated. The injured personnel were evacuated for medical treatment, and their families were notified.  

The incident occurred as Israeli and Lebanese delegations completed a third day of talks in Washington on Thursday. An Israeli embassy spokesperson told The Times of Israel that the negotiations ended without an agreement on a proposed partial Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon, but both sides agreed to continue discussions for a fourth day. Negotiators are scheduled to reconvene on Friday at the US State Department.  

According to The Times of Israel, US officials had hoped Thursday’s discussions would produce an agreement under which Israel would withdraw from designated areas in its buffer zone, referred to as “pilot zones,” with Lebanese army forces replacing Israeli troops.  

An Israeli source told the publication that the proposed arrangement would not affect Israel’s six-mile-deep buffer zone in southern Lebanon. Instead, the IDF would withdraw only from locations where Hezbollah infrastructure had already been cleared while maintaining its broader security zone.  

Earlier Thursday, Israeli and Lebanese officials rejected a US claim that Israel had already begun withdrawing from key positions in southern Lebanon. A US official reportedly said the troop movement was a goodwill gesture toward the Lebanese government during ongoing negotiations.  

Both Israeli and Lebanese officials have also expressed frustration over the US decision to address the conflict with Hezbollah as part of the memorandum of understanding signed last week with Iran rather than treating Lebanon as a separate diplomatic track.  

Speaking on Thursday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Israel and Lebanon were close to reaching a “commitment of intent” but did not provide further details on the negotiations.