An Israeli soldier has been sentenced to 21 days in military prison for desecrating a Christian symbol in southern Lebanon, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said on Monday.
IDF spokeswoman Ariella Mazor said that the soldier was sentenced following an investigation into an "incident several weeks ago in southern Lebanon, in which a soldier was photographed desecrating a Christian religious symbol."
The photograph in question shows an IDF soldier appearing to put a cigarette in the mouth of a statue of the Virgin Mary. The soldier who took the photograph was sentenced to 14 days in military prison.
"The IDF views the incident with great severity and respects freedom of religion and worship, as well as holy sites and religious symbols of all religions and communities, Mazor said in a post on social media platform X.
"Procedures regarding conduct around religious institutions and religious symbols are routinely reinforced to troops prior to entering the relevant areas."
The Israeli military currently controls 68 locations in southern Lebanon amid its war with the pro-Iranian Hezbollah militia, Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam confirmed to dpa on Monday. Prior to the recent war, there were only five locations occupied by Israel, Salam said.
The Israeli military justified its actions by citing the security of northern Israel. The objective of these operations, it stated, is to eliminate "the acute threat" to the residents of northern Israel and to prevent a renewed entrenchment of the Lebanese Hezbollah militia.
