“A short while ago, IDF (Israeli army) observation troops spotted a terrorist squad attempting to infiltrate the security fence with Lebanon and plant an explosive device,” the army said in a statement. “Four terrorists were killed.”

Earlier, the army said it had carried out strikes overnight on Hezbollah “terrorist” targets inside Lebanon.

Since the start of the war triggered by the unprecedented attack by Hamas on Israel on Oct 7, clashes on the Israel-Lebanon border have left around 10 people dead on the Lebanese side, mostly combatants, but also a Reuters journalist and two civilians.

On the Israeli side, at least two people have been killed.

The international community fears the opening of a second front in the conflict, with Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hezbollah group joining its Hamas ally in the fight against Israel.

Israel has begun evacuating thousands of residents from 28 locations in the north.