BEIRUT, Jan. 14 (Xinhua) -- Four militants were killed in armed clashes with an Israeli force after the armed group managed on Sunday dawn to infiltrate the occupied Lebanese Shebaa Farms, Lebanese military sources told Xinhua.
The sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told Xinhua the unidentified armed group was able to break through the barbed wire fence placed by the Israeli army in the Baathail Lake and enter within an unspecified distance into an occupied area of the Shebaa Farms located between the Israeli sites of Ruwaisat al-Alam and al-Samaqa.
The sources added that the gunmen, without identifying their affiliation, clashed with an Israeli army force for more than two hours with machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades, which led to the deaths.
The sources said that a batch of 20 missiles were fired from Lebanon towards four Israeli sites in the Shebaa Farms about an hour before the infiltration of the unidentified armed group.
The sources added that Israeli heavy artillery fired more than 100 shells targeting the southern villages.
The Lebanon-Israel border witnessed increased tension since Oct. 8, 2023, after Hezbollah fired dozens of rockets toward Israel in support of the Hamas attacks on Israel the previous day, prompting Israel to respond by firing heavy artillery toward southeastern Lebanon.
