The Israeli military announced on Wednesday that it killed a high-ranking Hezbollah commander in the Lebanese capital, Beirut.

The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said on Telegram that it had “eliminated Hajj Yusuf Ismail Hashem, the Hezbollah Southern Front Commander.”

The Iran-backed Shiite organisation has not yet commented on the claim, though Lebanese media reported that Hezbollah confirmed his death.

Seven people were killed, and 26 others were injured in the overnight attack in a neighbourhood on the southern outskirts of the city, Lebanon’s Health Ministry said.

Hezbollah said in a statement that Mohammad Baqir al-Nabulsi, a well-known Hezbollah member and the nephew of Hezbollah spokesman Mohamed al-Nabulsi, who was killed by Israel in 2024, was killed.

“A convoy of around four black cars had arrived in the area of Jnah when the loud blasts took place,” a resident in the Beirut neighbourhood told dpa.

All cars had been removed by Wednesday morning, but the street where the attack took place was full of blackened debris.

The IDF said the Israeli Navy, directed by the Intelligence Directorate and Northern Command, conducted a strike in Beirut and killed Hashem.

It said Hashem’s “Southern Front” was responsible for carrying out terrorist activities targeting Israeli civilians and for combat operations against IDF soldiers in southern Lebanon.

It added that “as a  commander of the unit, Hashem advanced and led the rehabilitation of Hezbollah, and commanded the rocket launches and hostile aerial attacks toward Israeli territory.”

The attack took place shortly after midnight.

The army also hit an overnight car in Khaldeh, 12 kilometres south of Beirut.

The Iran-backed Hezbollah militia had earlier fired rockets and drones at northern Israel. The Israeli rescue service Magen David Adom reported several people injured, including a child who was slightly hurt.

After nearly a year of war between Israel and Hezbollah, a ceasefire was agreed in November 2024.

Hezbollah resumed attacks on Israel following the start of the Iran war more than a month ago, prompting Israel to respond with heavy airstrikes and ground operations in southern Lebanon. 

(dpa/NAN)