Originally published at The Crux
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BEIRUT — Houssam Naddaf said no words could capture the shock of seeing an Israeli soldier smash a crucifix in his family’s private garden in the southern Lebanese village of Debel — an image he recognized instantly as it spread online.
“I saw it on the internet like everyone else,” he said. Naddaf had not been able to go to the house in person to see the damage because of restrictions on movement imposed by Israeli forces in the area.
Israeli forces took control of the area as part of the latest Israel-Hezbollah war, which began on March 2 when the Iran-backed Lebanese militant group fired a salvo of missiles over the border two days after the U.S. and Israel launched their war on Iran. Israel then launched a ground invasion of southern Lebanon and its forces have remained there despite the announcement of a truce last week.
The images of the soldier swinging an ax into the fallen statue of Jesus on the cross in the southern Lebanese village of Debel had sparked widespread condemnation, in Lebanon and internationally.
An Italian peacekeeper sets up a crucifix that was sent by Italy to replace one that
