Israeli soldiers shoot 3 Hizbollah gunmen -army

JERUSALEM, Aug 15 (Reuters) Israeli soldiers shot three Hizbollah gunmen in southern Lebanon today, the Israeli army said.

An army spokeswoman, speaking a day after a UN-brokered ceasefire went into effect, said she did not know whether any of the gunmen had been killed.

Israeli troops yesterday shot five Hizbollah fighters, killing at least one of them, in southern Lebanon, the army said, adding that the soldiers believed they had been under threat.

The Israeli army had said prior to the ceasefire that its troops would stop offensive actions but would defend forces deployed in southern Lebanon.

Israeli forces entered Lebanon after Hizbollah guerrillas kidnapped two Israeli soldiers in a cross-border raid on July 12.

Israeli officials today said the army plans to withdraw in as little as seven to 10 days and to hand over some of its forward positions to UN troops within 48 hours.

REUTERS KD RAI1901