An Israeli strike on Tuesday in the southern suburbs of Beirut, a stronghold of Hamas ally Hezbollah, killed Saleh al-Aruri, deputy head of the Hamas movement, according to security officials.
Hamas confirmed Aruri’s death, along with five others, in what Lebanese state media reported as an Israeli drone strike. This marks the first death of a senior Hamas official during the nearly three-month war in Gaza and the first Israeli strike on the Lebanese capital since hostilities began.
While cross-border exchanges of fire between Israeli forces and Hezbollah have occurred sporadically along Lebanon’s southern border, the strike in Beirut represents a dramatic departure from previous Israeli actions. The Israeli military declined to comment on the incident.
Lebanese security officials confirmed Aruri’s death alongside his bodyguards and reported damage to the targeted building and a nearby car. Hamas media stated that the strike also killed two members of its armed wing and called it a “treacherous Zionist attack.”
A Lebanese security official identified Samir Fandi, another Hamas official, among the casualties. Prime Minister Najib Mikati condemned the attack, expressing worry about Lebanon being drawn further into the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Aruri, accused by Israel of orchestrating numerous attacks, was a figure of significance within Hamas. His death and the location of the strike are bound to elevate tensions in the region.
Islamic Jihad, another Palestinian group engaged in the Gaza conflict, denounced the incident as an attempt to “drag the entire region into war.”
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