Two Israeli soldiers jailed over smashing of Jesus statue in Lebanon village

Two Israeli soldiers have been removed from combat duty and sentenced to 30 days in jail after one used a sledgehammer to smash a statue of Jesus in southern Lebanon, while the other filmed him, the Israel Defense Forces have said.

An image circulating on social media on Monday showed an Israeli soldier using a sledgehammer to strike the head of a statue of a crucified Jesus that had fallen from its cross in a Christian village in southern Lebanon, near the border with Israel, prompting outrage across Christian communities worldwide.

After determining the authenticity of the photo, the Israel Defense Forces