• By Aditya Jha
  • Sat, 21 Sep 2024 02:37 PM (IST)
  • Source:JND

Israel-Hezbollah Conflict: Iran-backed Lebanese militia group Hezbollah on Saturday claimed that another senior commander of the group was killed in an Israeli air strike, in addition to its senior Commander Ibrahim Aqil, who was also killed during the strikes. Hezbollah further claimed that 15 of its 'fighters' were killed, and the air strike from Israel will trigger the tension between the two forces.

Providing the details, Hezbollah added that Ahmed Mahmud Wahbi led the operations in support of Hamas when the Palestine militant group attacked Israel. He is said to be the leader of the Radwan Force, which attacked Israel. The attack from Hamas on October 7, 2023, triggered the war between Gaza and Israel.

Earlier, the Israeli military claimed that they did an air strike on Beirut's southern part, confirming that Radwan Force chief Ibrahim Aqil and several other commanders were killed in the attack. Israel described this action as part of "self-defence" and warned Lebanon of several such attacks. Israel later revealed that they had information regarding a possible attack from Lebanon and they had no option but to "eliminate" the danger. 

The tension between Israel and Hezbollah escalated after a strange series of pagers blasts in Lebanon on Tuesday. An explosion of over 5,000 pagers used by Hezbollah members led to the deaths of 12 people and nearly 2,800 injuries. Lebanon and Hezbollah claimed that Israel's spy agency, Mossad, was behind all these attacks. Earlier, Israel informed the US of attacks in Lebanon but decided not to reveal the exact details. 

Later, Hezbollah expressed its anger by declaring the explosions as "unacceptable" and warned Israel to be ready to face the "consequences." In response, Israel did an airstrike on the southern part of Beirut, which killed 15 members of Hezbollah. Several nations, including the US and UK, have asked Israel and Lebanon to establish the peace through diplomatic talks. France has requested Israel to avoid a direct face-off with Lebanon or Iran, as it will escalate the tension.