An Israeli air strike on southern Lebanon has reportedly killed a top Hezbollah Commander, Al Jazeera is reporting.
The deceased commander has been identified as Wissam al-Tawil, also known as “Jawad”, deputy head of a unit in the elite Radwan force.
Unnamed security sources told AFP news agency that Jawad played “a leading role in managing Hezbollah’s operations in the south.”
He was killed in an Israeli raid targeting his car in the south, they said.
The killing of Jawad is coming a few days after Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said the killing of a Hamas deputy leader, Saleh al-Arouri, will not go unpunished. The Hamas leader was killed in a drone strike in Lebanon. The drone attack is believed to have been carried out by Israel which has not claimed, nor denied responsibility.
Hezbollah has lost more than 130 fighters in Israeli shelling on southern Lebanon since cross-border bombardment began on 7 October. Hezbollah rocket attacks on Israel have also killed about a dozen Israelis.
Mr Nasrallah also warned Israel in two televised addresses last week not to launch a full-scale war on Lebanon noting that whoever thinks of war with them will regret it.
Today’s killing further raises concerns about the possibility of hostilities between Israel and Hamas extending to other states of the Middle East.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in the Middle East speaking with leaders of the region about the need to contain the ongoing offensive.