Israel killed a senior Hezbollah commander, Ibrahim Aqil, in an airstrike on Beirut’s southern suburbs on Friday, two security sources in Lebanon reported, intensifying the year-long conflict between Israel and the Iran-backed group.
Aqil, a key figure on Hezbollah’s top military body, was targeted alongside members of the elite Radwan Unit during a meeting, according to the sources and Israeli Army Radio.
Lebanon’s health ministry confirmed the airstrike left eight dead and 59 wounded in a preliminary toll. The strike comes after Hezbollah faced another significant blow earlier in the week when an explosion, believed to be orchestrated by Israel, killed 37 members and wounded thousands by detonating their communication devices.
Lebanese civil defense teams were still searching for survivors under the rubble of two buildings hit in the attack. The Israeli military acknowledged conducting a “targeted strike” but provided no further details.
This marks the second high-profile Hezbollah commander killed in Beirut by Israel in less than two months. In July, an Israeli airstrike killed Fuad Shukr, another top military leader within the group.
Aqil had a $7 million bounty on his head from the U.S. government for his alleged involvement in the 1983 bombing of U.S. Marines in Lebanon, according to the U.S. State Department.
Following the strike, warning sirens blared across northern Israel, with local media reporting heavy rocket fire. Hezbollah claimed responsibility for firing Katyusha rockets at Israel’s main intelligence headquarters in the north, accusing it of orchestrating assassinations.
White House national security spokesman John Kirby said the U.S. had not been notified of the strike in advance and reiterated warnings for Americans to avoid or leave Lebanon. “War is not inevitable up there at the Blue Line, and we're going to continue to do everything we can to try to prevent it,” Kirby said, referring to the border between Lebanon and Israel.
