Two IDF soldiers killed, four severely wounded in Southern Lebanon

Two Israel Defense Forces reservists were killed in combat in Southern Lebanon, the military announced on Thursday morning.

The slain troops were identified as Maj. (res.) Harel Birenstock, 34, from Nokdim, and Chief Master Sgt. (res.) Tamir Vaknin, 33, from Eilat.

Four IDF reservists were severely wounded in the same incident and evacuated to the trauma center at Rambam Health Care Campus in Haifa, the hospital’s spokesperson said on Thursday. All four remain in serious condition.

The troops were killed when a booby-trapped building exploded as their force entered it, according to Hebrew media reports. Israel has not determined whether the structure was rigged before or after the ceasefire took effect.

“Harel and Tamir left behind families and full lives, yet reported for reserve duty every time with commitment, dedication and a profound sense of mission. They fell while defending the security of the State of Israel and the residents of the North,” said Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz, offering condolences and wishing the wounded a full recovery.

The deaths bring the IDF’s toll on all fronts since the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, massacre to 968.

Separately, the Israeli military said it began conducting strikes in Southern Lebanon on Wednesday in response to what it called a “blatant violation” of the ceasefire agreement by the Iranian-backed Hezbollah terrorist organization. The strikes follow an IDF evacuation warning issued earlier to residents of Al-Mansouri, a village located within the Security Zone where military activity was ongoing.

The IDF said it issued the advance warning to protect civilians’ safety. According to the military, civilians had reached the area under the auspices of the Lebanese Armed Forces, which established a checkpoint there in violation of existing understandings.

On the diplomatic front, a second day of U.S.-brokered talks between Israel and Lebanon ended early in Rome on Wednesday, after the Jewish state requested that negotiations be suspended, a source on the Israeli negotiating team told JNS.

Yechiel Leiter, Israeli ambassador to the United States and head of the Jewish state’s delegation, asked U.S. mediators to halt the talks about three hours before their scheduled conclusion. The envoy did so “following repeated misleading leaks by the Lebanese delegation,” according to the source.

Multiple media reports detailed purported developments from the negotiations on Tuesday and Wednesday. It was not immediately clear which of those leaks led to Leiter’s decision.

Talks are expected to resume on Thursday, the final scheduled day of this round, the source told JNS.

The Lebanese president’s office stated that “the American side asked the Lebanese and Israeli delegations to stop today’s meeting.” The pause was sought “to complete its contacts,” the office said.

Israeli and Lebanese technical teams opened a second round of negotiations in Rome on Tuesday, the seventh round of U.S.-facilitated talks aimed at implementing the trilateral framework agreement reached earlier this summer.

The current round follows separate White House meetings between U.S. President Donald Trump and Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the launch of the first pilot zones in Southern Lebanon.