Israel says soldier killed in south Lebanon fighting

Israel's military said Friday that one of its soldiers died in combat in southern Lebanon, bringing its losses to 20 personnel since the war with Hezbollah began in early March.

Staff Sergeant Negev Dagan, 20, "fell during combat in southern Lebanon", the military said, without providing additional information.

Since the war began, 19 Israeli soldiers and one civilian contractor have been killed.

 The Israel-Hezbollah fighting in southern Lebanon has remained active even after a ceasefire, with the IDF continuing strikes on Hezbollah targets and issuing evacuation warnings in several Lebanese border towns.

On May 1, the IDF reportedly killed "several" Hezbollah operatives in southern Lebanon after they had operated close to Israeli soldiers, and that more than 50 Hezbollah infrastructure sites were struck, including command centers and other military structures.

Rockets fired

The same report said Hezbollah also fired rockets at IDF troops in southern Lebanon and launched a drone that lightly injured two people in northern Israel, which Israel described as a ceasefire violation.

War trackers stated that said the ceasefire did not fully stop fighting in the south, because the IDF continued to operate there against Hezbollah fighters and targets it considered "active threats".

Hezbollah, for its part, had been launching smaller-scale rocket and drone attacks, while Israel sought to raise the pressure by targeting senior Hezbollah figures.