Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has pledged that a soldier will face punishment after desecrating a crucifix in a village in southern Lebanon, saying the act runs contrary to Jewish values of tolerance.

"I was ⁠stunned and saddened to learn that an IDF (Israeli Defence Forces) soldier damaged a Catholic religious icon in southern Lebanon. I condemn the act in the strongest terms," he wrote on X.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar, who described the soldier's actions as disgraceful and shameful, also apologised for the incident.

"We apologise for this incident and to every Christian whose feelings were hurt," he said on X.

The incident sparked widespread condemnation after an image surfaced showing the soldier striking a fallen sculpture of Jesus on the cross with the blunt side of an axe.

According to Reuters, the image was posted by Palestinian reporter Younis Tirawi.

Reuters reported that it verified the location of the image as Debel, one of the few villages in southern Lebanon where residents remained during an Israeli military campaign against the Iran-backed Hezbollah that began on March 2.

Desecrating holy symbols

A priest in Debel told Reuters that the cross was part of a small shrine in the garden of a family living on the edge of the village.

"One of the Israeli soldiers broke the cross and did this horrible thing, this desecration of our holy symbols," he said.

The Assembly of Catholic Ordinaries of the Holy Land, which includes Jerusalem’s Catholic Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, described the act as “a grave affront to the Christian faith”.

"It further reveals a disturbing failure in moral and human formation, wherein even the most elementary reverence for the sacred and for the dignity of others has been gravely compromised," the statement said.

United States ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee also condemned the act on X: "Swift, severe, and public consequences are needed," he said.

The IDF said it is investigating the incident and has pledged to assist the local community in restoring the statue to its original place.

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