A senior commander of the Iran-backed Hezbollah was killed in an Israeli strike in southern Lebanon.
Citing three security sources, Reuters announced on January 8 that the killed Hezbollah commander is Wissam al-Tawil, the deputy of one of the units of the Radwan forces.
According to these security sources, Tawil and another member of Hezbollah were killed on January 8 after their vehicle was targeted in the village of Majdal Selm in Lebanon.
According to Reuters, one of these security sources described the attack as “very painful,” and another source predicted that “everything will now be set ablaze.”
Hassan Nasrallah, the Secretary-General of Hezbollah, had warned Israel in two televised speeches last week not to “launch a full-scale war against Lebanon.”
Since the border clashes began after Hamas’ attack on Israel on October 7, more than 130 Hezbollah fighters have been killed in southern Lebanon, and another 19 have been killed in Syria.
Since October 8, 2023, Hezbollah has been launching attacks on Israeli military bases and positions near the northern border of Lebanon, while Israel has been targeting the positions of this Iranian-backed paramilitary group in response.
Tensions between Hezbollah and Israel have escalated following the killing of Saleh al-Arouri, the deputy leader of Hamas, in an Israeli attack in Beirut. On January 6, Hezbollah announced the firing of 62 missiles towards the Israeli aerial surveillance base in Mount Meron as an “initial response” to al-Arouri’s killing.
On Sunday, January 7, the Israeli army warned of the occurrence of another “war” with Hezbollah, stating that Hezbollah had targeted an air traffic control base in northern Israel.
The United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, the European Union, Japan, Israel, and several other countries have designated Hamas as a terrorist organization.
Iran-backed militias have been flaring up tensions in the Middle East since the beginning of the war in Gaza. In the past months, Iran’s proxy forces have attacked hundreds of targets in the region. In addition to Hezbollah, the Hashd al-Shabi in Iraq and Houthis in Yemen have played a key role in undermining security in the region. The Houthis in particular have been attacking vessels in the Red Sea, threatening global trade.
