Israeli strike kills two members of Hezbollah-linked rescue force in Lebanon - statement

Israeli strike kills two members of Hezbollah-linked rescue force in Lebanon - statement

An Israeli strike on a civil defence centre in southern Lebanon on Thursday killed two rescuers and destroyed an ambulance, according to the rescue force, which is affiliated with armed group Hezbollah.

The civil defence operations room at the Islamic Health Authority said that "direct Israeli bombardment on an emergency centre in the town of Hanin" killed two male unit members.

There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military.

It was the first time in more than three months of cross-border shelling that an Israeli strike hits an emergency centre. In other cases, rescuers and medics have been wounded in Israeli bombardment as they tried to reach the site of a previous strike or extract casualties.

The deaths bring to 25 the number of civilians that have been killed in Israeli shelling on southern Lebanon, including children and journalists.

At least 140 Hezbollah fighters have also been killed there, and nine troops on the Israeli side of the border.

Hezbollah also launched rockets across the border at Israel on Thursday, as U.S. special envoy Amos Hochstein met with Lebanese officials in Beirut in an attempt to cool tensions on the disputed frontier between Lebanon and Israel.