The Israeli military has targeted a top Hezbollah figure in a strike on Beirut’s southern suburbs, two security sources in Lebanon say, sharply escalating the year-long conflict between Israel and the militant group.
At least eight people have died and 59 others have been injured – at least eight of whom are in a critical condition, Lebanon’s health ministry said, in what the Israeli military called a “targeted strike” in Beirut.
The attack hit near key Hezbollah facilities and flattened a multistory building in a residential neighbourhood, security sources said.
Know the news with the 7NEWS app: Download today
Sources told CNN that Hezbollah’s operations commander Ibrahim Aqil was the target. His fate is unknown.
Last year, to mark the 40th anniversary of Hezbollah’s bombing of the US Embassy in Beirut in 1983, the US State Department announced a reward of up to $7 million for information on Aqil, a key leader of the militant group.
Reuters witnesses heard jet noise over the city around the time of the attack, and a cloud of smoke could be seen rising from the area.
“The IDF (Israel Defence Forces) conducted a targeted strike in Beirut. At this moment, there are no changes in the Home Front Command defensive guidelines,” the Israeli military said, providing no further details.
Footage of the targeted area broadcast by Lebanon’s al-Jadeed showed burnt-out cars and a street strewn with rubble.
Hezbollah’s al-Manar TV said the southern suburbs, known as the Dahiyeh, had been subjected to an act of aggression and reported that one person had been killed and 14 wounded, saying this was a preliminary toll.
Ignited by the war in the Gaza Strip, the Hezbollah-Israel conflict has intensified significantly this week, with the Iranian-backed group suffering an unprecedented attack in which pagers and walkie-talkies used by its members exploded, killing 37 people and wounding thousands.
On Thursday night, the Israeli military carried out its most intensive air strikes in southern Lebanon since the conflict erupted almost a year ago.
– with CNN