Israeli army announces killing of Hezbollah leader in Lebanon

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A leader of Hezbollah was killed this Friday in southern Lebanon, according to the Israeli army. “ Earlier Friday, an Israeli Air Force plane shot and killed Ali Abdel Hassan Naïm, deputy commander of Hezbollah’s rocket and missile unit, in the Bazouriyeh region “, indicated the Israeli army in a press release on Friday March 29. The man was notably “ responsible for carrying out and planning attacks against Israeli civilians “, she said.

The Lebanese movement did not immediately comment on the attack but announced “ the martyr » of seven of his fighters, including Ali Abdel Hassan Naïm, “ on the road to Jerusalem », expression that the party uses to designate its members killed by Israelwithout specifying where or when they died.

This Friday, the official Lebanese news agency ANI mentioned a “ targeted raid carried out by an enemy drone (Israeli, editor’s note) on a car » in Bazouriyé, near the coastal town of Tyre, reporting at least one death. According to an AFP correspondent on site, the targeted car was destroyed and debris was scattered all around, before the authorities cordoned off the area.

Daily violence

Cross-border clashes have particularly intensified this week, raising fears of a generalized conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, which a devastating war has already opposed in 2006. For almost six months, the violence has in fact opposed daily at the border Israeli-Lebanese army Hezbollah, which claims to support Hamas in its war against Israel in the Gaza Strip.

The Lebanese and pro-Iranian armed movement, which has an arsenal of rockets and significant precision missiles, targets military positions and localities close to the border. Israel responds by bombarding Lebanese territory ever deeper, notably carrying out targeted attacks against Hezbollah and Hamas officials.

Televised speech by Hezbollah leader

The White House estimated Thursday that a return to calm on the Israeli-Lebanese border should be “ highest priority “. On Wednesday March 27, eleven civilians, including ten rescue workers, were killed on the Lebanese side of the border by strikes attributed to Israel, and one civilian died on the Israeli side in bombings claimed by Hezbollah.

Since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas on October 7, at least 347 people have been killed in Lebanon – mostly Hezbollah fighters, but also at least 68 civilians -, according to an AFP count. On the Israeli side, ten soldiers and eight civilians were killed, according to the army. The leader of the Shiite party, Hassan Nasrallah, is due to speak in a televised address this Friday evening.

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