Israel on Wednesday evening carried out its first airstrike in Beirut since before the ceasefire in Lebanon entered into effect last month, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz saying the Air Force targeted the commander of Hezbollah’s elite Radwan Force. Hezbollah and Israel have continued to attack each other since US President Donald Trump first announced a ceasefire on April 16, which has now largely unraveled, though fighting remains at a lower level than before. After the Israeli Air Force struck the southern suburbs of the Lebanese capital, a Hezbollah stronghold, Netanyahu and Katz issued a joint statement saying, “The IDF has just struck in Beirut the commander of the Radwan Force in the Hezbollah terror organization to eliminate him.”
The Israeli leaders said Radwan Force operatives “were responsible for firing [rockets] at Israeli communities and harming IDF soldiers.” “No terrorist has immunity, Israel’s long arm will reach every enemy and murderer. We promised to bring security to the residents of the north. This is how we act, and this is how we will continue to act,” they added. A source close to Hezbollah told AFP that “Malek Ballout, the operations commander in the Radwan Force,” was killed in the Israeli strike. The Israel Defense Forces did not immediately comment on the rare strike in the Lebanese capital, the first in almost a month, with the last having been on April 8 — after Trump asked Israel to stop targeting Beirut.
Earlier on Wednesday, three Israeli soldiers were injured in Hezbollah explosive drone attacks in southern Lebanon, as the Iran-backed terror group continued to launch attacks on troops and on northern communities. According to the IDF, Hezbollah launched several explosive drones and rockets at Israeli troops stationed in southern Lebanon throughout the day. In one incident, a soldier was severely wounded by an explosive drone. In another incident, two drones exploded near Israeli forces, injuring one soldier moderately and another lightly. All three were taken to hospitals and their families were notified, the army said. (Read More)
