Israel Defence Forces (IDF) on Friday confirmed top Hezbollah leader, Ibrahim Aqil, was killed in an airstrike in southern Beirut. Reportedly, Akil was killed along with members of the Hezbollah elite Radwan unit while they were attending a meeting.
According to officials, at least eight people were killed in the airstrike.
However, Hezbollah has not confirmed the reports yet.
IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari said, “With the precise intelligence direction of the Intelligence Division, air force fighter jets targeted the Beirut area and killed Ibrahim Aqil, the head of the Hezbollah terrorist organization’s operations team, the acting commander of the Radwan [special forces] unit.
“In the attack, together with Aqil, the top operatives and the chain of command of the Radwan unit were eliminated,” the statement read.
Who is Ibrahim Aqil?
Aqil served as the head of Hezbollah's elite Radwan Force and Jihad Council, the group's highest military body.
For his alleged role in carrying out the 1983 bombing of the US Embassy in Beirut, the US State Department has sanctioned Aqil. He was also accused of giving directions to take the American and German hostages in Lebanon during the conflict in the 1980s.
Aqil was second-in-command of the armed forces, following Fuad Shukr. The US had announced a reward of up to $7 million in April 2023 for information about him.
The Beirut strike hit during the rush hour, as people were leaving work and students headed home from school.
Israel had launched a series of airstrikes on Lebanon while Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah condemned the attacks in a televised address on Thursday.
Meanwhile, Hezbollah said it pounded northern Israel with 140 rockets and the region awaited the revenge promised by Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah after the pager blasts.
Hezbollah said that its attacks had targeted several Israeli military sites along the border with Katyusha rockets, including multiple air defence bases.
Since October 8, Hezbollah and Israel have exchanged near-daily fire since October 8, a day after the Israel-Hamas war.
During the televised address, Nasrallah said that Israel has “crossed all red lines”.
"You will not be able to return the people of the north to the north...No military escalation, no killings, no assassinations and no all-out war can return residents to the border," said Nasrallah.