The death of a top Hezbollah military commander, Ibrahim Aqil, in an Israeli air strike on the Lebanese capital Beirut on Friday has raised fears of an all-out war. This strike, which also killed several senior Hezbollah figures, resulted in at least 14 deaths and dozens of injuries in the densely populated Dahieh area, a stronghold of the Iran-backed group in the city’s southern suburbs. The situation has prompted a senior UN official to warn of a potential conflict in the Middle East that could lead to unprecedented devastation. The recent attacks have caused chaos in Beirut, with emergency teams scrambling to rescue the wounded and search for individuals trapped under the rubble. The strike has dealt another blow to Hezbollah, following a series of explosive incidents involving the group’s pagers and walkie-talkies, which resulted in the deaths of at least 37 people. This strike marks the first attack on Beirut since July, when Hezbollah’s military chief Fuad Shukr was killed.
In a recent announcement, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesperson Daniel Hagari revealed that Aqil, a high-ranking commander in Hezbollah’s elite Radwan forces, was eliminated, along with other key operatives from the group’s operations staff and several Radwan commanders.
Hagari emphasized that these individuals were found hiding underground beneath a residential building in the heart of the Dahiyah neighborhood in southern Beirut, exploiting Lebanese civilians as human shields.
Furthermore, the IDF spokesperson stated that the deceased were actively involved in planning Hezbollah’s ‘Conquer the Galilee’ assault, with the intention of infiltrating Israeli communities and targeting innocent civilians. This plan was originally disclosed by the Israeli military in 2018, when they announced the prevention of tunnels constructed by Hezbollah for the purpose of breaching Israeli territory and abducting or harming civilians.
Earlier in April, the United States had announced a pursuit for Aqil, also known as Tahsin, and had put forth financial rewards for any information leading.
