“The target of the Israeli strike was the commander of the forces, Radván Ibrahim Akíl, who was killed,” said an AFP source. The agency noted that Akíl was on the US wanted list.
Reuters witnesses heard the noise of planes over the city at the time of the attack and saw a cloud of smoke over the affected area. According to Reuters sources and witnesses, the attack took place in the southern suburb of Dahiya, which is a stronghold of the Iran-backed Shiite movement. Local television Al-Jadíd brought images from the scene of charred cars and streets strewn with rubble.
“The army carried out a targeted strike in Beirut. At the moment, there are no changes to the defense instructions from the home front headquarters,” the Israeli army said without further details, referring to the instructions given to residents in crisis situations.
The incident represents a further escalation of tensions following the explosions of thousands of Hezbollah members’ communication devices and massive cross-border attacks between Israel and Hezbollah this week.
According to AFP, since last October, when the current conflict on the Lebanese-Israeli border broke out, this is the third strike on the territory of the Lebanese capital that Israel claimed or is attributed to. Hezbollah carries out attacks on Israel as an expression of solidarity with the Palestinian terrorist movement Hamas, which is facing an Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip in retaliation for the bloody attack by Hamas on southern Israel last October.
