Hizbollah kills 5 Israeli soldiers in south Lebanon

TYRE, Lebanon, Aug 4 (Reuters) Hizbollah guerrillas were reported to have killed five Israeli soldiers in ferocious fighting in south Lebanon today, as Israeli forces tried to expand areas of control under cover of heavy bombardment.

Lebanese security sources said the guerrillas detonated roadside bombs and fired anti-tank rockets and assault rifles at Israeli forces occupying seven small enclaves in south Lebanon.

The guerrillas also battled forces trying to launch new incursions near the village of Markaba and a strategic hill near the coastal town of Naquora.

Al Arabiya television said five Israeli soldiers were killed near Markaba.

Israeli aircraft launched more than 100 strikes on targets across the south while artillery pounded areas close to the border with hundreds of shells, the sources said.

''The thuds of explosions are continuous, warplanes are not leaving the skies. It is one of the worst days (of fighting),'' one source said.

Hizbollah said in a statement its guerrillas destroyed a tank and a bulldozer and battled infantry units near Markaba, just inside Lebanon, from midnight, inflicting several Israeli casualties.

In another statement, the Shi'ite Muslim group said there was house-to-house fighting in the village of Aita al-Shaab overnight and confrontations near Taibeh.

Four Israeli soldiers were killed in similar fighting on Thursday.

Israel said yesterday it had carved out a zone containing 20 villages 6 to 7 km (3.7 to 4.3 miles) from the border and the army, which already has some 10,000 soldiers in the area, said it had a plan to clear a 15 km (9 mile) security area in south Lebanon, if authorised.

Hizbollah, which triggered the war by capturing two Israeli soldiers on July 12, had killed at least 68 Israelis, including 41 soldiers, before the latest report.

REUTERS SSC BST1422