Israel continues to shell positions in Lebanon, but says it does not want an escalation. Meanwhile, Hezbollah confirms that it lost many fighters in Beirut on Friday.
Following the Israeli air strike on targets in Beirut, the number of victims has risen to 31, including three children and seven women. Hezbollah confirmed that 15 of its fighters were among the victims – the commander of Hezbollah’s elite Radwan unit, Ibrahim Akil, was also killed.
Another important Hezbollah commander among the victims
According to Israeli army spokesman Daniel Hagari, the attack was aimed at commanders “who were involved in planning operations with anti-tank missiles, rocket fire and the planned invasion of Israeli territory.” According to the statement, Akil and the other Hezbollah commanders killed in the attack were planning an attack on northern Israel in which they wanted to “infiltrate Israeli communities and murder innocent civilians” like the radical Islamic Palestinian organization Hamas did on October 7.
In addition to Akil, Ahmed Mahmud Wahbi, a commander of his elite unit, was also killed. Wahbi apparently led the Radwan unit’s military operations in support of Hamas after October 7.
Israel’s army: No plans for escalation in Lebanon
After Akil’s killing, the Israeli army assured on Friday that it was not seeking to escalate the conflict in Lebanon. “We are not aiming for a broad escalation in the region,” army spokesman Hagari told journalists. Meanwhile, Israeli Defense Minister Joav Gallant wrote on the online service X that Israel’s “enemies” no longer had a “place of refuge.”
On Tuesday and Wednesday, hundreds of Hezbollah pagers and walkie-talkies exploded simultaneously in Lebanon. The explosions, which occurred in two waves and were attributed to Israel, killed 37 people and injured almost 3,000 others.
Hamas, which is allied with Hezbollah, invaded southern Israel on October 7 last year, triggering the war in the Gaza Strip. According to Israeli sources, at least 1,205 people were killed in the unprecedented Hamas attack and 251 others were taken hostage to the Gaza Strip. According to Hamas figures, which cannot be independently verified, more than 41,300 people have been killed so far in the Israeli offensive in response to the attack.
Since October 8, Israel’s north has also been under constant attack from Hezbollah. Israel is responding to the attacks with counterattacks in Lebanon. Tens of thousands of people on both sides of the border have since become internally displaced.
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
