Hezbollah, Israeli troops clash on the ground in eastern Lebanon’s Bekaa

Official news agency says three Lebanese army soldiers among dead, as Hezbollah reports clashes with Israeli troops on the ground.Lebanese civil defence inspect the destruction at the site of an overnight Israeli air strike on the village of Douris, near Baalbek in Lebanon's Bekaa Valley, on March 6, 2026 [AFP]Published On 7 Mar 2026At least 26 people have been killed in Israeli air and ground raids on the Lebanese town of Nabi Chit, in the eastern Bekaa Valley, according to the country’s official National News Agency (NNA).There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military, which has launched numerous deadly attacks and sent ground troops into southern Lebanon, but until now not further north in the east, since the Iran-aligned Lebanese group Hezbollah fired missiles at Israel on Monday to avenge the killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, joining the war.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4Anti-aircraft fire seen in eastern Lebanon amid Israeli incursionlist 2 of 4Thousands of Syrian refugees flee Lebanon after Israeli strikeslist 3 of 4Iran’s legal case for striking the Gulf collapses under scrutinylist 4 of 4Iran’s strikes on the Gulf: Burning the bridges of good neighbourlinessend of listAccording to the NNA, an Israeli commando unit “infiltrated under the cover of darkness” towards a family cemetery in the eastern part of Nabi Chit overnight.“After being spotted by resistance fighters and local residents, clashes ensued with the commandos using light and medium weapons,” the agency said, adding that warplanes and helicopters intervened intensively and carried out about 40 raids after the Israeli units were exposed.The confrontation resulted in 26 deaths, including three Lebanese army soldiers and one member of the general security directorate, according to the NNA.This latest reported raid would be the deepest Israeli forces’ incursion inside Lebanon since special unit troops apprehended Hezbollah operative Imad Amhaz from the northern city of Batroun in November 2024.The Lebanese authorities earlier reported that 16 people were killed in the strikes, with 35 others injured.Meanwhile, clashes have erupted as Israeli forces attempted a landing operation along the Lebanon-Syria border, with the armed group Hezbollah saying its fighters were involved, according to NNA, as this fierce front in the wider regional war launched by the United States and Israel boils over.The NNA said, “Clashes are taking place on the eastern mountain range along the Lebanese-Syrian border … to repel Israeli landing attempts.”‘Infiltration from the Syrian direction’The agency gave the location of the incursion as Nabi Chit, in the eastern Baalbek district, where Hezbollah holds sway.Hezbollah said in a statement that its fighters had “observed the infiltration of four Israeli enemy army helicopters from the Syrian direction”.After landing, advancing troops “were engaged by a group” of Hezbollah fighters as they reached the Nabi Chit cemetery, Hezbollah said, noting the use of light and medium weapons.“The clash escalated after the enemy force was exposed,” it added, saying the Israeli troops launched intense strikes and began to evacuate.A separate statement said Hezbollah fighters had fired rockets as the Israeli forces withdrew.Fighters “targeted the evacuation zone in the outskirts of the town of Nabi Chit with rocket fire”, the group said.Footage shared on social media showed waves of gunfire in the air.Nabi Chit was the target of at least 13 Israeli air strikes on Friday, according to the NNA, with the Lebanese Health Ministry reporting at least nine people killed.Lebanon on Monday banned military activities by Hezbollah, but its fighters continue to launch missiles on Israel.Al Jazeera’s Zeina Khodr, reporting from the Bekaa Valley in eastern Lebanon, says the Lebanese government is in a difficult position after Hezbollah entered the war and continued its military activities despite the ban.“Just a few weeks ago, the Lebanese army claimed that it was in operational control over the south of the country,” she said.“The very fact that Hezbollah fighters are on the front lines in those border villages, engaging in direct combat with the Israeli army, shows that Hezbollah is the most powerful force in that area,” Khodr stressed.The southern suburbs of Beirut have been under relentless Israeli bombardment for days, forcing the mass exodus of tens of thousands from the densely populated neighbourhood of Dahiyeh.In the past week, the Israeli military has threatened a large-scale enforced evacuation ⁠of southern Lebanon as well, causing a huge exodus of civilians from these areas.The death toll from Israeli attacks on Lebanon this week has risen to at least 217 people, the Lebanese Health Ministry said on Friday, adding that an additional 798 people have been wounded and an estimated 95,000 displaced.Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said “the consequences of this displacement, at the humanitarian and political level, may well be unprecedented”.“Our country has been drawn into a devastating war that we did not seek and did not choose,” he added.