Israeli Strike Kills Four, Including Senior Hezbollah Commander

Lebanon says slain commander was the most important person killed in the war

An Israeli airstrike in southern Lebanon killed four people on Tuesday, including Abu Taleb, described as a “senior” Hezbollah commander in charge of operations in the central region of southern Lebanon along the border.

Israel has yet to comment on the killings, but Lebanese officials suggested it was a major event, terming Taleb “the most important in Hezbollah to be killed up to now” since the start of the war in October. Others put him roughly in line with Wissam Tawil, a “field commander” killed in January.

The attack took place in the village of Jouya. The identities of the other three people killed in the attack were not yet been made public, but reports are they were affiliated with Hezbollah.

The attack came a day after a strike in the northeast, near the Syrian border. That attack, in the Hermel District, killed at least five people, and destroyed or badly damaged a number of tankers. Three of those slain were reported to be Hezbollah-affiliated Syrians.

Attacks against Lebanon, particularly southern Lebanon, have increased in recent weeks, with reports suggesting Israel has a mid-June timetable for starting an all-out war against Lebanon.

For the last eight months, Israel and Hezbollah have been engaged in a limited war in everything but name, with near daily rocket fire going into northern Israel damaging military sites and with well over 400 people killed in Lebanon, including an estimated 300 Hezbollah members.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.