Jerusalem:
The Israeli military said on Sunday its troops in Lebanon had captured a Hezbollah operator, the first such announcement since it launched a cross-border ground offensive.
“During limited, localised and targeted raids based on precise intelligence… soldiers discovered an underground tunnel shaft,” the army said in a statement.
“The troops encircled the building, scanned the tunnel shaft, and discovered an underground compound… where a Hezbollah terrorist was embedded alongside weapons and equipment.”
The military did not specify when he was captured, while Hezbollah did not offer an immediate comment.
The army said that the fighter surrendered to its soldiers, who “interrogated him on-site and then transferred him to a detention facility for further questioning within Israel”.
In a video clip released with the statement, a group of Israeli soldiers can be seen speaking in Arabic with the Hezbollah fighter as he slowly emerges from the tunnel.
“Come out before your life is over,” the Israeli soldiers are heard calling to the Hezbollah fighter.
The fighter then asks the soldiers if they want a cigarette, to which one of the soldiers replies: “Cigarettes, coffee and $5,000.”
The Israeli army launched a ground operation in southern Lebanon on September 30, carrying out “targeted raids” in the villages along the border.
The army says it has detected multiple tunnel shafts under homes, including one it said was about 25 meters long and crossed into Israel.
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