The Israeli military said a there was a "security incident" on Israel's northern border with Lebanon on Monday and its forces were engaged in "ongoing combat".
Israel's N12 TV News first reported an exchange of fire between Israeli forces and fighters and said a series of explosions were heard in the area. It said the military foiled an attack by the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah.
Reuters news agency, quoting unnamed sources familiar with situation, said Hezbollah carried out an operation on Monday against Israeli soldiers in the disputed Shebaa Farms area.
Residents were ordered to stay in their houses and "any kind of activity in open areas is forbidden", an Israeli army statement said.
There was no immediate statement by Hezbollah.
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Lebanon: Living on the Blue Line - Al Jazeera World |
A resident of the town of Khiam, some 5km (2 miles) from Lebanon's southern border, told Al Jazeera she heard about two dozen explosions and witnessed large columns of smoke rising near Mount Hermon.
Syria air strike
Tension has risen along the Israel's northern frontier with Lebanon and Syria, including the occupied Golan Heights, after a Hezbollah fighter was killed in an apparent Israeli air strike on the edge of Damascus last Monday.
Speaking in parliament, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the government was closely following developments in the north.
"The military is prepared for every scenario," he said. "We operate in all the arenas for Israel's defence - close to our borders and far from our borders.
"Lebanon and Hezbollah will bear the responsibility for any attack from Lebanese territory."
The Israeli military said on Thursday it was sending reinforcements to its northern frontier "in accordance with a situational assessment".
The Shebaa Farms area was captured by Israel in the 1967 Middle East war and is claimed by Lebanon.
Following the killing of two Hezbollah members in the Syrian capital Damascus last August, Hassan Nasrallah, the group's leader, vowed it would respond if Israel killed any more of its fighters in the country.
Hezbollah deployed fighters in Syria as part of Iranian-backed efforts to support President Bashar al-Assad in the country's nine-year conflict.
Israel sees the presence of Hezbollah and its ally Iran in Syria as a strategic threat, and has mounted hundreds of raids on Iranian-linked targets there.
The last exchange of fire between Hezbollah and Israel took place in September 2019, when the Lebanese armed group launched rockets across the southern border at an Israeli vehicle, and Israel responded by shelling border areas. There were no confirmed casualties.
That attack came in response to an Israeli drone attack on Beirut's southern suburbs, a Hezbollah stronghold.
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Exchange of fire across Israel-Lebanon border: Israeli media - Al Jazeera English
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