BEIRUT, Aug 10 (AFP): The Lebanese army said a blast at a weapons depot near the Israeli border killed six soldiers on Saturday, with a military source saying the troops were removing munitions from a Hezbollah facility.
Under the truce that ended last year's war between Israel and Hezbollah, Lebanese troops have been deploying in the country's south and dismantling the Iran-backed militant group's infrastructure in the region.
The deaths come after the Lebanese government decided this week to disarm Hezbollah and tasked the army with drawing up a plan to complete the process by year end.
Hezbollah has said it will ignore the cabinet's decision, which came under heavy US pressure, while the group's backer Iran said Saturday it opposed the effort.
A military statement gave a preliminary toll of six soldiers killed "while an army unit was inspecting a weapons depot and dismantling its contents in Wadi Zibqin", in Tyre district near the Israeli border.
Investigations were underway to determine the cause of the blast, it added.
A military source, requesting anonymity as they were not authorised to brief the media, told AFP the blast took place "inside a Hezbollah military facility".
Troops were "removing munitions and unexploded ordnance left over from the recent war" when the blast occurred, the source added.
President Joseph Aoun said he was informed by army commander Rodolphe Haykal of the "painful incident".
Prime Minister Nawaf Salam paid tribute to the troops who were killed "while performing their national duty", calling the army the protector of Lebanon's "unity and its legitimate institutions".
US envoy Tom Barrack, who has led Washington's efforts to press for Hezbollah's disarmament, extended the administration's "deepest condolences" over the "loss of these brave servicemen".
Hezbollah lawmaker Ali Ammar likewise offered his "sincerest condolences to the Lebanese army".
The commander of the UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), Major General Diodato Abagnara, said the soldiers were "simply doing their job to restore stability and avoid a return to open conflict".
The blast came days after UNIFIL spokesman Andrea Tenenti said troops had "discovered a vast network of fortified tunnels" in the same area.
UN spokesman Farhan Haq told reporters that the troops uncovered a cache of artillery, rockets, mines and improvised explosive devices.
In April, the Lebanese military said three soldiers were killed in a munitions blast, just days after another was killed in an explosion as troops dismantled mines in a tunnel.
