Israeli soldier killed in cross-border fire with Hezbollah

Israel’s military said Friday that one of its soldiers was killed in combat in northern Israel as the country’s army and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah continue to trade cross-border fire.

33-year-old Israeli reservist Master sergeant Valeri Chefonov was killed in northern Israel Thursday in an explosive drone attack from Lebanon.

The family and friends of Chefonov attended his funeral at the military cemetery in Netanya on Friday.

Hezbollah launched Thursday an array of suicide drones on an artillery base in Israel's Kabri in response to attacks on Lebanese civilians and villages.

Hezbollah and Israel have been trading near daily exchanges of fire since the Israel-Hamas war broke out last year.

In Lebanon, the cross-border violence since October has killed nearly 500 people, mostly fighters but also including 95 civilians, according to an AFP tally.

On the Israeli side, at least 30 people have been killed, the majority of them soldiers, according to the Israeli authorities.