Illustrative image. (The Israeli Defense Forces)
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) late on July 18 killed a senior commander in Hezbollah’s elite Radwan Force in southern Lebanon,
Ali Jaafar Maatouk, also known as Habib Maatouk, was an operations commander in the Radwan force’s Hajjar regional unit, the IDF said in a statement, adding that the unit is responsible for attacks on northern Israel’s Ramim Ridge region, an area that has come under repeated rocket, missile, and suicide drone fire amid the war on the Palestinian enclave of the Gaza Strip.
Security sources told Reuters that Maatouk had replaced another commander in the Radwan unit, Ali Ahmed Hussein, who was killed in an Israeli strike in April.
Another operations officer in the same Radwan unit, along with several more Hezbollah fighters, were killed in the same strike which targeted a three-story house in the town of Jmaijmeh, according to the IDF.
A separate strike targeted a Hezbollah command room in the town of Majdal Selm, the IDF said. Fighter jets also struck a building used by the group in Shaqra, it added.
Hezbollah announced the death of Maatouk shortly after the strike on Jmaijmeh, but did not detail his rank or role in the group. The group mourned another member, Mohamad Hassan Mostafa, early on July 19, again without providing any details about him.
Earlier on July 18, a Hamas commander and another Hezbollah official, who was reportedly involved in military operations in the western part of the border region in southern Lebanon, were killed in separate Israeli strikes.
Separately, the IDF announced on July 18 that an Israeli soldier seriously wounded in a Hezbollah drone attack on a military base in northern Israel last month has succumbed to his wounds. The reservist was serving in the ranks of the 188th Armored Brigade’s 53rd Battalion.
Hezbollah and its allies have escalated attacks against Israel in support of Gaza in recent weeks. Senior Israeli officials threatened Lebanon with a military operation in response.
So far, the border clashes have resulted in 12 civilian deaths on the Israeli side, as well as the deaths of at least 18 IDF soldiers and reservists. On the Lebanese side, more than 500 people have been killed, including 354 fighters of Hezbollah and over 100 civilians.
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is exciting times. in the next 3 months one day were going to log in and see that 100-1000 jew citizens have been. a day of joy and celebratiob by god is near.
the devil jew is going to burn and the world wil be joyous
😂. never gonna happen.
hezbollah needs to respond in kind. nutty, gavir or other israeli top officials needs targeting. no need to worry about ‘collateral’ damage, the entire population is enemy. hitting settlements or outposts doesn’t threaten idf, they are expendable. hit members of war cabinet at home or work. maybe even send yair a present.
they either lack the courage or capability. i’ll let you decide.
hezbollah has probably made a deal with the us that they would not attack israel full scale. you can see it is just semantics. the us are the ones who disclosed location of hezbollah military leaders to israel.
correction: israel bombs another vacant building thus killing the 10,0000th senior hezbollah commander