Seven others were severely wounded in the attack on the base next to the city of Binyamina, Israel's military said.
Israel's national rescue service said Sunday's drone attack wounded 61 people in total.
The Lebanon-based Hezbollah claimed responsibility and called the attack retaliation for Israeli strikes on Beirut on Thursday that killed 22 people.
UN peacekeepers say Israeli tanks burst through the gates of their base in southern Lebanon. (AP PHOTO)
Meanwhile, the United Nations said Israeli tanks had burst through the gates of a base of its peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon.
The UNIFIL peacekeeping force said two tanks destroyed the main gate of a base and forcibly entered before dawn on Sunday.
After the tanks left, shells exploded 100m away, releasing smoke that blew across the base and sickened UN personnel, it said in a statement.
In its version of events, the Israeli military said militants of the Iran-backed group Hezbollah had fired anti-tank missiles at Israeli troops, wounding 25 of them.
A tank helping evacuate the casualties under fire then backed into the UNIFIL post, it said.
"It is not storming a base. It is not trying to enter a base. It was a tank under heavy fire, mass casualty event, backing up to get out of harm's way," the military's international spokesman Nadav Shoshani told reporters.
In a statement, the military said it used a smoke screen to provide cover for the evacuation of the wounded soldiers but its actions posed no danger to the UN peacekeeping force.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu released a statement addressed to UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres.
"The time has come for you to withdraw UNIFIL from Hezbollah strongholds and from the combat zones," it said.
"The IDF (Israeli Defence Force) has requested this repeatedly and has met with repeated refusal, which has the effect of providing Hezbollah terrorists with human shields."
The safety of — António Guterres (@antonioguterres) @UN personnel & property must be guaranteed. The inviolability of UN premises must be respected at all times. Attacks against peacekeepers are in breach of international law & may constitute a war crime. @UNIFIL_ personnel & premises must never be targeted.October 13, 2024
Guterres paid tribute to UNIFIL's peacekeepers, who "remain in all positions", UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement, adding "the UN flag continues to fly".
The secretary-general reiterated a warning that peacekeepers must not be targeted, Dujarric said.
"Attacks against peacekeepers are in breach of international law, including international humanitarian law. They may constitute a war crime."
The United States said on Sunday it will send US troops to Israel along with an advanced anti-missile system to bolster the country's air defences following missile attacks by Iran.
US President Joe Biden said the move was meant "to defend Israel", which is weighing an expected retaliation against Iran after Tehran fired more than 180 missiles at Israel on October 1.
Pentagon spokesperson Major General Patrick Ryder described the deployment as part of "the broader adjustments the US military has made in recent months" to support Israel and defend US personnel from attacks by Iran and Iranian-backed groups.
The Terminal High Altitude Area Defence system, or THAAD, is a critical part of the US military's layered air defence systems and adds to Israel's already formidable anti-missile security.
The US is sending an advanced air-defence system to Israel ahead of expected Iranian strikes. (AP PHOTO)
Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi warned the United States was putting the lives of its troops "at risk by deploying them to operate US missile systems in Israel".
It comes as Israeli forces widened their raid into northern Gaza and tanks reached the north edge of Gaza City, forcing many families to leave their homes, residents said.
Nine days into a major Israeli operation in northern Gaza, the Hamas-run Gaza government media office said Israeli strikes had killed around 300 Palestinians there.
It said Israel's bombardment of civilian houses and displacement shelters was intended to force residents to leave Gaza once and for all, which Israel denies.
On Sunday, Israeli tank shelling killed at least 19 Palestinians at a school sheltering displaced families in Nuseirat camp in the central Gaza Strip, medics said.
Hours earlier an Israeli airstrike killed five children in The Shati refugee camp in Gaza City, according to local media.
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