Hamas security official killed in Israeli strike in Lebanon
People and civil defence members stand near a burning car after an Israeli airstrike targeted a car on the edge of Lebanon's port city of Sidon on August 9, 2024.Photo Reuters
An Israeli airstrike on Friday evening targeted a vehicle in southern Lebanon, killing Samer Al-Hajj, a senior security official from the Palestinian group Hamas.
The strike occurred near the port city of Sidon, about 60 kilometres from the Israeli border, and also left Al-Hajj's bodyguard critically wounded, according to a Hamas source and two other security sources.
Israel has been conducting airstrikes against members of Hamas, Hezbollah, and other factions in Lebanon for the past 10 months, in conjunction with the ongoing conflict in Gaza.
These resistance groups have launched rockets, drones, and artillery into northern Israel, with most of the clashes concentrated along the Israel-Lebanon border. However, Israeli strikes have also targeted senior figures from these groups further north.
In January, an Israeli airstrike on the outskirts of Beirut killed Saleh Arouri, Hamas's deputy chief. Another recent strike in the same area last week resulted in the death of Fuad Shukr, Hezbollah's top military commander. Hours after Shukr's death, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in Tehran, with Iran and its regional allies, including Hezbollah and Hamas, attributing the attacks to Israel and vowing retaliation.