IDF soldier places cigarette in mouth of Virgin Mary statue in Lebanon

In a photo that went viral on the internet shows an Israel Defence Force's (IDF) soldier trying to place a cigarette into the mouth of a statue of the Virgin Mary. This incident is said to be from a Christian village in southern Lebanon.

The IDF responded to the same by claiming that the soldier will be punished, once identified.

"It views the incident gravely and emphasizes that the soldier’s conduct completely deviates from the values expected of its troops," said the IDF. “The incident will be investigated, and command measures against the soldier will be taken in accordance with the findings,” it added.

Though the picture appeared to be shared online on May 6 (Wednesday), the initial inquiry done by the IDF says that the photo was taken in a village in Debel, several weeks ago.

The military further said it “respects freedom of religion and worship, as well as holy sites and religious symbols of all religions and communities” and has “no intention of harming civilian infrastructure, including religious buildings or religious symbols,” amid its fighting against Hezbollah.

This is not the first time that something like this has happened in this village, it seems. A footage which was shared online a month ago, also showed one of the soldiers smashing a statue of Jesus in the same village, Debel. The soldier, however, was punished and taken off combat duty.