Jerusalem
Israeli airstrikes in southern Lebanon have killed three Hezbollah commanders, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed on Wednesday. These strikes, which also targeted Hezbollah’s weapon storage and production facilities in Beirut’s Dahieh district, are seen as a significant blow to the group’s operations.
The three commanders killed were Ayman Muhammad Nabulsi, who was set to lead Hezbollah’s anti-tank missile unit in southern Lebanon; Hajj Ali Yussef Salah, commander of the Tebnit area; and Muhammad Musa Salah, commander of the Khiam area. Salah was responsible for launching over 2,500 rockets at northern Israel and Israeli forces in southern Lebanon. The IDF stated that the airstrikes have “further degraded Hezbollah’s ability to carry out terror attacks.”
In addition to eliminating key leaders, the IDF also destroyed a significant number of Hezbollah’s weapons facilities located under civilian buildings in Dahieh, a Shi’ite stronghold in southern Beirut. These sites, which have been operating for over two decades, produced and stored missiles intended for attacks on Israel. One of the key sites was found beneath a residential complex, putting local civilians at risk.
The IDF highlighted the danger these hidden weapons sites pose to both Israeli and Lebanese civilians, citing the 2020 explosion at the Port of Beirut as a stark reminder of the risks of storing explosives near civilian areas. Hezbollah’s ongoing rocket attacks, especially after the Hamas attacks in October 2023, continue to escalate tensions in the region.
