Israeli strike on Beirut killed second key commander, Hezbollah says

Hezbollah said Saturday that a 2nd elder commandant was among 16 fighters killed successful an Israeli aerial onslaught connected its Beirut stronghold the erstwhile day, highlighting the standard of the stroke to its subject leadership.

Israel said Friday's onslaught connected the confederate suburbs of Lebanon's superior killed the caput of Hezbollah's elite Radwan Force, Ibrahim Aqil, and respective different commanders.

Coming connected the heels of sabotage attacks connected communications devices this week that killed 37 radical successful Hezbollah strongholds, the onslaught raised caller questions astir the Iran-backed group's information arrangements and dealt a dense stroke to its fighters' morale.

Hezbollah named the 2nd commandant arsenic Ahmed Mahmud Wahbi, saying helium had headed the group's operations against Israel from the onset of the Gaza warfare successful October until the commencement of this year.

Confirming the decease of Aqil, who was wanted by the United States for engagement successful the 1983 bombing of the U.S. Embassy successful Beirut, Hezbollah hailed him arsenic "one of its large leaders."

AFP journalists said Friday's onslaught near a monolithic crater and gutted the little floors of a high-rise building.

It was the 2nd Israeli onslaught connected Hezbollah subject enactment since the commencement of the Gaza war. An Israeli onslaught connected Beirut successful July killed Fuad Shukr, a apical operations main for the movement.

It besides followed sabotage attacks connected pagers and two-way radios utilized by Hezbollah connected Tuesday and Wednesday, which killed 37 radical and raised fears of a wider war.

Stephane Dujarric, spokesperson for U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, said the satellite assemblage was "very acrophobic astir the heightened escalation" and called for "maximum restraint" from each sides.

The Israeli subject said it conducted a "targeted strike" against Aqil, which a root adjacent to Hezbollah said killed a full of 16 Radwan Force members.

The root said Aqil was "at a gathering with commanders" erstwhile helium was killed.

The United States had offered a $7 cardinal reward for accusation connected Aqil, describing him arsenic a "principal member" of an enactment that claimed the 1983 embassy bombing, which killed 63 people.

Spearhead

Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters person battled each different on the Israel-Lebanon borderline since Hamas militants triggered the warfare successful Gaza with their October 7 attack.

The absorption of Israel's firepower for astir a twelvemonth has been connected Gaza, but with Hamas overmuch weakened, that absorption has present moved to Israel's bluish border.

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Israel's "enemies" would find nary refuge, not adjacent successful Beirut's confederate suburbs.

Israeli subject spokesperson Daniel Hagari said aft the onslaught that Israel was "not aiming for a wide escalation successful the region."

But Hamas called it a "brutal and violent aggression" and an "escalation."

Iran's overseas ministry accused Israel of seeking to "broaden the geography of the war."

Months of near-daily cross-border exchanges person killed hundreds successful Lebanon, astir of them fighters, and dozens successful Israel, forcing tens of thousands connected some sides to fly their homes.

The latest stroke to Hezbollah came aft thousands of Hezbollah operatives' pagers and walkie-talkies exploded implicit 2 days, sidesplitting 37 radical and wounding thousands.

Hezbollah main Hassan Nasrallah vowed connected Thursday that Israel would look retribution for those blasts.

Before Friday's Beirut strike, Israel said Hezbollah had fired dozens of rockets from Lebanon pursuing aerial attacks that destroyed dozens of the militant group's launchers.

Speaking to troops connected Wednesday, Gallant said "Hezbollah volition wage an expanding price" arsenic Israel tries to "ensure the harmless return" of its citizens to borderline areas.

"We are astatine the commencement of a caller signifier successful the war," helium said.

Aqil's Radwan Force spearheaded Hezbollah's crushed operations, and Israel has repeatedly demanded done planetary mediators that its fighters beryllium pushed backmost from the border.

'Fear of wider war'

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delayed by a time his scheduled departure to the United States, wherever helium is owed to code the U.N. General Assembly.

On Friday the U.N.'s precocious commissioner for quality rights, Volker Türk, told the Security Council the onslaught connected Hezbollah communications devices violated planetary instrumentality and could represent a warfare crime.

The pagers and walkie-talkies exploded arsenic their users were buying successful supermarkets, walking connected streets and attending funerals, plunging Lebanon into panic.

"I americium appalled by the breadth and interaction of the attacks," said Türk, adding that it "is a warfare transgression to perpetrate unit intended to dispersed panic among civilians."

International mediators, including the United States, person been scrambling to halt the Gaza warfare from becoming an all-out determination conflict.

Hamas' October 7 attacks that sparked the warfare resulted successful the deaths of 1,205 people, mostly civilians, connected the Israeli side, according to an AFP tally based connected Israeli authoritative figures that see hostages killed successful captivity.

Out of 251 hostages seized by militants, 97 are inactive held successful Gaza, including 33 the Israeli subject says are dead.

Israel's retaliatory subject violative has killed astatine slightest 41,272 radical successful Gaza, astir of them civilians, according to figures provided by the Hamas-run territory's wellness ministry. The United Nations has acknowledged the figures arsenic reliable.