Israeli soldiers punished over vandalism of Jesus statue in Lebanon
The Israeli soldier who hit a statue of Jesus with a sledgehammer in Lebanon and the soldier who photographed the incident will receive 30 days of military detention, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has said.
The IDF also said the two soldiers who have not been named would be “removed from combat duty” following an inquiry.
Another six soldiers who were at the scene and failed to intervene or report the incident will be dealt with separately, it added.
The incident in the village of Debel in Southern Lebanon prompted widespread condemnation after an image of it was widely shared online this week.
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he was “stunned and saddened” by what happened.
In its statement on Tuesday, the IDF said an inquiry into the incident had “determined that the soldiers’ conduct completely deviated from IDF orders and values” and expressed “deep regret over the incident”.
It also said IDF troops had replaced the damaged statue “in full co-ordination with the local community” a short while ago.
It stressed that its operations in Lebanon were directed “solely” against the Iran-backed group Hezbollah “and other terrorist groups, and not against Lebanese civilians”.
