Israeli soldiers accused of looting in southern Lebanon

 49m ago

 (11:15 GMT)

Israeli soldiers accused of looting in southern Lebanon

The Israeli military is struggling to stop looting by soldiers in southern Lebanon despite warnings from top commanders.

The Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper quoted an unnamed reservist who said he has witnessed several instances of looting.

“We came across many reserve units at the border. They simply took everything – weapons, souvenirs, jewellery, blankets, pictures,” the soldier said.

In another instance, he said, he witnessed an Israeli commander preventing soldiers from taking looted goods back to Israel.

The Haaretz newspaper also reported soldiers have looted private homes and shops in Lebanon whose inhabitants or owners fled the fighting. There were similar reports during the war in Gaza.

Israeli Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir issued a stark warning about looting by soldiers in a speech to senior military officers a week ago.

Israeli soldiers on patrol in the market of the Old City of Nablus in the occupied West Bank [AFP]

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