Army returns fire at Israel for first time after soldier killed

The Lebanese army said an Israeli strike killed one of its soldiers during a rescue operation with the Red Cross in southern Lebanon on Thursday.

"A soldier was killed and another was wounded as a result of an aggression by the Israeli enemy during an evacuation and rescue operation with the Lebanese Red Cross in Taybeh village," the army said.

The Lebanese Red Cross said four of its volunteers were wounded. It said the convoy near the village of Taybeh, which was accompanied by Lebanese troops, was targeted despite coordinating its movements with U.N. peacekeepers.

The Lebanese army said it returned Israeli fire for the first time on Thursday in nearly a year of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah after a second soldier was killed by Israeli fire.

"A soldier was killed after the Israeli enemy targeted an army post in the Bint Jbeil area -- in the south, and the personnel at the post responded to the sources of fire," the army said in a statement. A military official told AFP this was the first response to Israeli fire since last October because the post had been "directly" hit, requesting anonymity to discuss sensitive matters.