HEZBOLLAH STRIKES BACK

Drone bomb kills 4 Israel soldiers as militants breach air defences

- CHRIS HUGHES

ISRAEL was reeling last night after suffering one of its bloodiest attacks in the war with Gaza and Lebanon.

Four soldiers were killed and 58 were injured seven seriouslyafter a Hezbollah explosive drone hit their base in central Israel.

All four killed near Binyamina City were sergeants aged just 19.

Lebanese militants said it targeted Israel's elite Golani brigade, launching dozens of missiles to occupy the country's air defence systems during the assault by drones.

The flying bomb dodged air defences from the ground and slipped past warplanes hunting it down before blowing up a military canteen. Troops were apparently dining at the time of the blast.

Several rockets fired from Lebanon also hit the northern Israeli city of Karmiel. Debris from one shot down caused an unspecified number of injuries.

Hezbollah said the attack was revenge for a blast in Beirut last Thursday that killed 22.