4th IDF soldier dies in Lebanon fighting as Hezbollah launches record number of attacks on Israeli soldiers & towns
IDF soldiers find Hezbollah infrastructure hidden near a church in southern Lebanon
A second Israeli soldier fell in the fighting in southern Lebanon on Thursday, raising the overall death toll to four, as the Israeli military continues expanding its ground operation amid relentless rocket and drone attacks from Hezbollah.
The soldier was identified as 21-year-old Sgt. Aviad Elchanan Volansky, a resident of Jerusalem who served in the 7th Armored Brigade.
Volansky is the son of Defense Establishment Comptroller Brig.-Gen. (res.) Yair Volansky and was a fourth-year student at the Hesder Yeshiva in Itamar, located in Samaria. He is the 8th soldier from the yeshiva who was killed in the war.
Sergeant Aviаd Elchanan Volansky, 21, from Jerusalem, was killed recently when an anti-tank missile struck a tank belonging to the Golani Brigade's combat team. Four additional IDF soldiers — two officers and two fighters from Battalion 77 — were lightly injured in the attack.… pic.twitter.com/zlMllCkCrF
— Amit Segal (@AmitSegal) March 26, 2026
The head of the yeshiva eulogized him, saying, “You had Jewish pride; you were not ashamed of your Judaism. You were humble on the one hand, and at the same time, proud of the Torah. You were among those who rose early to the study hall, alongside your volunteering in firefighting. Everyone wanted to go to the infantry, but you wanted the armored corps.”
Another IDF officer and a soldier were severely wounded in an “operational accident” amid a clash with Hezbollah terrorists in southern Lebanon overnight, the Israeli military stated on Friday.
Hezbollah kept up a withering fire of hundreds of rockets and drones throughout Thursday, most of which targeted IDF troops in southern Lebanon, while around 90 rockets crossed the border into Israel. An impact in Nahariya killed one man and seriously wounded another.
The terror group also launched rockets at central Israel three times, claiming on Thursday that it was targeting the IDF headquarters, the Kirya, in central Tel Aviv. According to Ynet News, Wednesday set a new record for alarm sirens in Israel, with 399 alerts triggered following roughly 500 total rocket launches.
Daily Update (March 26): Hezbollah Attacks Against Israel
— Israel-Alma (@Israel_Alma_org) March 27, 2026
On March 26, 93 Hezbollah attack waves against Israel were identified, indicating continued intense activity while maintaining a particularly high level of attacks.
During the day, in one of Hezbollah’s rocket barrages… pic.twitter.com/ZZ77pGLHXX
In response, Israel has deployed more troops into southern Lebanon, with Hezbollah reporting clashes with Israeli troops between Deir Seryan, about 5.5 km (3.5 miles) from the Israeli border near Metula, and al-Quassair, which lies several kilometers further inland.
According to the Times of Israel, citing results from an initial IDF probe, Volansky was killed when Hezbollah operatives launched two anti-tank missiles at an Israeli Merkava tank operating in the eastern part of southern Lebanon, from an area north of the Litani River.
While the first was intercepted by the Merkava’s TROPHY active protection system, the second missile hit the tank, killing Volansky and lightly wounding two officers and two soldiers from the 77th Battalion.
In another operation near the city of al-Khiam, Israeli soldiers found an active Hezbollah terrorist infrastructure near a church.
“During searches conducted in the area, the soldiers exposed and located a tunnel shaft and an underground infrastructure constructed within the church vicinity,” the IDF said.
“This combat zone, which the Hezbollah terrorist organization used for military activity, was first located by IDF troops in December 2024 and was then cleared of weapons and terrorists. During the current searches in the vicinity, the soldiers located three additional shafts constructed by Hezbollah during the ceasefire, indicating renewed use of the site.”
📍SOUTHERN LEBANON: IDF troops continue targeted ground operations to enhance the forward defense area
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) March 26, 2026
Operational accomplishments:
• 350+ Hezbollah terror infrastructure sites targeted & 330+ terrorists eliminated
• Weapons and military equipment located, including night… pic.twitter.com/08KmyvAr9g
“The repeated use of this site demonstrates Hezbollah’s systematic modus operandi of exploiting Lebanese civilians as human shields and deliberately embedding military infrastructure within religious sites and civilian areas,” the military said.
The IDF’s 226th Brigade 226 has carried out over 200 strikes, eliminating multiple terrorist cells and dismantling dozens of weapons storage facilities and buildings used by Hezbollah, the IDF reported.
The Israeli Air Force has also continued conducting heavy airstrikes across the country. On Thursday, the military said it killed Hassan Mohammad Bashir, a senior commander in Hezbollah’s anti-tank array in the Hajir area.
“As part of his position, Bashir advanced hundreds of terror attacks against IDF troops and Israeli civilians. In addition, Bashir commanded several terrorist cells that carried out continuous anti-tank fire toward northern Israel.”
The Lebanese government, meanwhile, renewed its call to Israel to halt its ground operations, with Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam announcing he would appeal to the UN Security Council, following a cabinet meeting.
The government continues to grapple with the strident opposition of Hezbollah and its allies to the expulsion of the Iranian ambassador, who was given until Sunday to leave the country.
Two ministers from Hezbollah and two from its allied Shiite Amal movement boycotted Thursday’s cabinet session, while dozens of protesters gathered near the Iranian embassy waving Iranian or Hezbollah flags amid chants of “Death to America, death to Israel.”
The All Israel News Staff is a team of journalists in Israel.
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