Top Hezbollah commander killed in Israeli strike on Beirut, IDF says

20 September 2024, 16:05 | Updated: 20 September 2024, 17:53

An Israeli strike on Lebanon's capital has killed a senior Hezbollah commander as tensions in the Middle East continue to rise.

Operations commander Ibrahim Aqil was killed in a "targeted strike" on the city, the IDF has confirmed.

Eleven others are believed to have died while at least 66 are injured following the drone strike which hit an apartment block in the city.

Aqil has been designated as a global terrorist by the US Justice Department for his alleged role in the 1983 US embassy bombings in Beirut which resulted in the deaths of 63 people.

In a statement on X, IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari said:“With the precise intelligence direction of the Intelligence Division, air force fighter jets targeted the Beirut area and killed Ibrahim Aqil, the head of the Hezbollah terrorist organization’s operations team, the acting commander of the Radwan [special forces] unit.

"In the attack, together with Akil, the top operatives and the chain of command of the Radwan unit were eliminated.”

This comes amid a backdrop of rising tensions in the Middle East after handheld devices across Lebanon exploded on Tuesday and Wednesday, killing at least 37.

This Israeli strike came after Hezbollah launched 140 rockets at the country's northern border.

Israel's military has reported the Hezbollah rockets arrived in three waves, targeting sites along its war-torn border with Lebanon.

Hezbollah claimed it struck the border with around 120 Katyusha rockets, hitting multiple air defence bases as well as the headquarters of an Israeli armoured brigade.

Read more: Pager attacks in Lebanon were '15 years in the making', intelligence sources say, as Israel launches heavy air raids

The Israeli ambulance service confirmed there has been no immediate reports of casualties.

A further 20 were shot at the areas of Meron and Netua.

Hezbollah has said the strikes were a response to Israeli attacks on villages and homes in southern Lebanon.

Late on Thursday, Israel’s military confirmed it had struck hundreds of rocket launchers across its border with Lebanon.

Israel said previously that it struck hundreds of rocket launchers and other Hezbollah infrastructure on Thursday night.

A statement from the Israel Defence Forces on X said: "With the direction of IDF intelligence, the IAF struck approximately 30 Hezbollah launchers and terrorist infrastructure sites, containing approximately 150 launcher barrels that were ready to fire projectiles toward Israeli territory.

"Additionally, the IDF struck Hezbollah terrorist infrastructure and a weapons storage facility in multiple areas in southern Lebanon."

As tensions continue to bubble over in the region, the UK has urged restraint, with Foreign Secretary David Lammy calling for an immediate ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah.

"Tonight I'm calling for an immediate ceasefire from both sides," Mr Lammy told Reuters.

"We are all very, very clear that we want to see a negotiated political settlement so that Israelis can return to their homes in northern Israel and indeed Lebanese to return to their homes.

"It came after Hezbollah's leader accused Israel of "crossing all red lines" after pager and walkie-talkie blast attacks in Lebanon, warning that they could be a "declaration of war".

Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah accused Israel of carrying out massacres, with the intention of killing "5,000 people in two minutes".

In Gaza, Palestinian authorities said 15 people were killed overnight in multiple Israeli attacks.