On 20 September 2024, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) struck a building in Haret Hreik in the Dahieh suburb of Beirut, Lebanon. The strike targeted commanders of Hezbollah's elite Redwan Force command committee in which they were holding a meeting within an apartment building.[1] Jihad Council member, Ibrahim Aqil, was killed in the attack along with commander Ahmed Mahmoud Wahabi and thirteen other high ranking Hezbollah fighters.[2][3] 31 people including three children and seven women were killed and 68 others were injured.[4][5]
A day after Hamas launched its 7 October attacks on Israel, Hezbollah[6] joined the conflict in support of Hamas[7] by firing on Israeli towns and positions.[6][8] Since then, Hezbollah and Israel have been involved in cross-border military exchanges that have displaced entire communities in Israel and Lebanon.[9][10]
Earlier on 17 September 2024, just a few hours before the explosions, the Security Cabinet of Israel established a new war objective: the safe return of displaced residents to the north.[11][12] Israel's domestic security agency, Shin Bet, announced it had thwarted a Hezbollah plot to assassinate a former senior defense official using an explosive device.[13][14] On the same day and the following one, thousands of handheld pagers and hundreds of walkie-talkies used by Hezbollah exploded in simultaneous attacks across Lebanon and Syria.[15][16][17] According to The New York Times, Israeli intelligence services had manufactured the devices.[18] The incident was described by Hezbollah's officials as the organization's biggest security breach since the start of the conflict.[19]
Ibrahim Aqil was a Lebanese militant and senior official in Hezbollah.[20] He was a member of the Jihad Council, which oversees the military and security operations of the organization. Aqil served as the head of operations and was considered by some as the de facto Chief of Staff of Hezbollah.[21][22] He was also believed to be the head of the Redwan Force, an elite Hezbollah branch.[20][23]
In the 1980s, he was a key figure in the Islamic Jihad Organization, a terrorist cell operated by Hezbollah and responsible for the 1983 US embassy bombing in Beirut, killing 63 people, and the attacks on the multinational force bases in Beirut that resulted in the deaths of 305 people.[24] During the 1980s, Aqil was responsible for the kidnapping of American and German hostages.[25]
On 10 September 2019, the U.S. Department of State designated him as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist.[21] On 18 April 2023, the Rewards for Justice program offered a reward of up to $7 million for information about him.[21] He was reportedly involved in planning a Hezbollah operation in northern Israel, which was believed to be similar to the October 7 Hamas attacks.[26]
At around 15:45 EEST, a strike targeted a building on Jamous Street in the neighborhood of al-Qaem in the southern suburbs of Beirut, an area known as a Hezbollah stronghold. Initial reports suggested Naim Qassem, Hezbollah's second in command, was one of those who was targeted.[27] The Lebanese National News Agency said that the strike was carried out in two sorties by an F-35 fighter jet.[28]
At least 31 people including three children and seven women were killed, while 68 others were injured.[4][28] Footage of the targeted site shows extensive damage to the building, with the street littered with debris and destroyed vehicles. It was also reported that the IDF confirmed a "targeted strike"; no changes in Home Front Command defensive guidelines were announced.[29] Another building also collapsed in the attack.[28] Rescue workers immediately started digging through the rubble as 20 people remain missing from the attack.[30]
The IDF said that at least 10 Hezbollah commanders were killed in the airstrike in Beirut alongside Ibrahim Aqil.[31] Hezbollah later confirmed the deaths of 15 of its members in the airstrike, including Aqil.[32]
Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati said the attack "proves again that the Israeli enemy does not value any human, legal or moral considerations".[28]
White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said he was "not aware of any prior notification regarding Israeli strikes on Beirut".[33]
Hamas denounced the attack, calling it a "crime" and saying that "Israel would pay the price" for the killings.[34]
Lebanon's Health Minister says at least 31 people, including three children and seven women, were killed in the Israeli attack on southern Beirut yesterday. Another 68 people were wounded in the attack, he added. The three children among the 31 killed in Israel's attack on southern Beirut yesterday were aged four, six and 10, Lebanon's Health Minister said during a press conference.
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