IDF says picture of soldier destroying Jesus statue in Lebanon is real, vows motion

[ad_1] The Israel Protection Forces confirmed the authenticity of a photograph displaying a soldier in southern Lebanon smashing a statue of Jesus with a sledgehammer, and stated it might take motion towards these concerned.

The assertion, issued shortly after midnight on Sunday-Monday, got here after the picture circulated on-line. After the picture unfold on social media, IDF spokesperson Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani posted on X that the navy would examine.

Following an preliminary assessment of the picture, the navy stated that “it was decided that the {photograph} depicts an IDF soldier working in southern Lebanon.”

“The IDF views the incident with nice severity and emphasizes that the soldier’s conduct is wholly inconsistent with the values anticipated of its troops,” the navy stated.

The image was taken within the Christian village of Debel in southern Lebanon. The IDF had operated towards Hezbollah within the space surrounding the neighborhood.

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By signing up, you conform to the terms The incident is being investigated by the Northern Command and is being dealt with “via the chain of command,” the IDF stated in its assertion, including that “applicable measures can be taken towards these concerned in accordance with the findings.”

The Northern Command may also help the Christian neighborhood in restoring the statue to its place, the navy added.

The picture, which circulated days right into a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, the Lebanese terror group backed by Iran, is the newest occasion during which footage has been printed of Israeli troopers destroying or looting property. It additionally comes following latest tensions between the Israeli authorities and Christian leaders in Jerusalem.

Lebanon |

An Israeli soldier smashing the top of a Jesus Christ statue throughout operations in southern Lebanon. pic.twitter.com/Sj1m16tj9q

— Younis Tirawi | يونس (@ytirawi) April 19, 2026

Hezbollah started attacking Israel on March 2, shortly after the start of the US-Israeli struggle with the Islamic Republic. Israel responded with heavy airstrikes and by increasing its troops’ presence deeper into Lebanon.

The battle entered a 10-day ceasefire on Friday. IDF troops are nonetheless working all through southern Lebanon, and Hezbollah explosives have killed and wounded Israeli forces in a number of incidents since then.

Amid the struggle with Iran, which entered its personal truce earlier this month, tensions have flared between Israeli authorities and Christian officers in Jerusalem.

In March, police stopped Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Pierbattista Pizzaballa and Father Francesco Ielpo, custos of the Holy Land, who're the highest Catholic figures within the area, from praying on the Church of the Holy Sepulchre on the Palm Sunday vacation — an incident which blew up into a global furor.

The police stated they have been following safety restrictions put in place through the struggle, during which Iranian missile hearth struck Jerusalem’s Outdated Metropolis. However following the uproar, preparations have been made for Easter companies to be held on the Christian holy website.

As well as, there have been a number of publicized situations of looting and destruction of property by Israeli troops in recent times, significantly amongst these working within the Gaza Strip after Hamas’s October 7, 2023, assault.

The IDF’s then-top lawyer, Maj. Gen. Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi, issued a warning in 2024 to commanders towards unlawful actions carried out by troops within the Gaza Strip, warning of “inappropriate statements that encourage unacceptable phenomena; unjustified use of power, together with towards detainees; looting, which incorporates the use or removing of personal property for non-operational functions; and destruction of civilian property opposite to protocols.”

Formal complaints have been filed abroad towards touring IDF troopers by the anti-Israel Hind Rajab Basis, accusing them of struggle crimes allegedly dedicated within the Gaza Strip. The group, which has brought on alarm in Israel, makes use of social media posts by Israeli troopers, officers, and reservists to find them in an try and have them arrested for alleged struggle crimes once they journey overseas.

Lazar Berman contributed to this story.

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