A Lebanese municipal employee was killed overnight when an Israeli force crossed more than a kilometer into the southern town of Blida, stormed the local municipality building, and opened fire, local reports said.

Lebanon's National News Agency described the incident as a “serious and unprecedented” incursion that took place shortly after 1:30 a.m. The Israeli unit, backed by armored vehicles and ATVs, reportedly entered the Blida municipal office where employee Ibrahim Salameh was spending the night and fatally shot him.

Residents said they heard screams and cries for help from the building during the raid, which lasted until around 4:00 a.m. When the Israeli forces withdrew, the Lebanese Army entered the premises, and Salameh’s body was transported to a nearby hospital with the help of the Lebanese Civil Defense.

The killing sparked outrage in Blida, where residents blocked the main road in protest against the Israeli army’s raid on the municipal center. A UNIFIL patrol passing through the area was reportedly stopped by demonstrators and forced to turn back.

In a statement on X, Israeli army spokesman Avichay Adraee confirmed an operation took place in Blida, saying troops were targeting what he described as “Hezbollah terrorist infrastructure.”

“During the night, as part of an Israeli army operation to destroy Hezbollah terrorist infrastructure in the area of Blida in southern Lebanon, troops identified a suspect inside a building and began a "suspect arrest procedure," Adraee said. “When a direct threat to the troops was detected, fire was opened to neutralize the threat, and a hit was recorded. The details of the incident are under investigation.”

Adraee claimed the municipal building had “recently been used for terror activities by Hezbollah under the guise of civilian infrastructure,” calling it “another example of Hezbollah’s reckless methods that endanger Lebanese residents and reflect the group's cynical exploitation of civilian infrastructure for terror purposes."

During a meeting with Army Commander Rodolf Haykal at the Baabda Palace on Thursday, President Joseph Aoun called on the Lebanese Armed Forces to respond decisively to any Israeli incursions into southern Lebanon, underscoring the need to defend the country’s territory and protect its citizens.

Aoun described the incident as part of a broader pattern of aggressive Israeli actions against Lebanon. He criticized the Cessation of Hostilities Monitoring Committee, also known as the Mechanism, which recently held a session to oversee ceasefire compliance. According to the president, the committee should go beyond simply documenting violations and work actively to halt them by pressuring Israel to comply with the November 2024 agreement and respect Lebanese sovereignty.

Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam condemned the raid as a “blatant assault on Lebanon’s state institutions and sovereignty,” expressing solidarity with the people of southern Lebanon.

“The Israeli incursion into Blida and the direct targeting of a municipal employee while performing his duties is a blatant assault on Lebanon’s state institutions and sovereignty,” Salam wrote on X. “I extend my heartfelt condolences to the family of martyr Ibrahim Salameh, who was killed while carrying out his work.”

Salam said his government was pressing the United Nations and countries sponsoring the cessation of hostilities agreement to ensure an end to “repeated violations” and to secure “Israel’s full withdrawal from our territory.”