Three civilians, including a woman and two children, were killed in an Israeli airstrike on the southern suburbs of Beirut, a stronghold of Hezbollah, on Tuesday night.
This was reported by the Lebanese Ministry of Health, which released a preliminary death toll.
The ministry’s statement highlighted the “Israeli aggression,” noting that the victims included “a woman and two children.”
The statement also mentioned ongoing searches for missing persons beneath the rubble, with 74 others injured, five of whom are in critical condition.
The Israeli military confirmed that its warplanes targeted and killed senior Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr in the southern suburbs of Beirut.
The Israeli army accused Shukr of being responsible for launching a rocket at the occupied Golan Heights.
A statement from the army spokesperson said: “Through a precise operation by the Israel Defense Forces, warplanes targeted Fuad Shukr, a senior military leader in Hezbollah and head of its strategic operations, based on intelligence from the military intelligence agency.”
Before the Israeli army’s confirmation, a source close to Hezbollah, speaking anonymously to AFP, claimed that Shukr had survived the Israeli strike that targeted him in Beirut’s southern suburbs.
Late on Tuesday, the Israeli army stated that it wanted to avoid a broader conflict with Hezbollah but was prepared “for any scenario.” Army spokesperson Daniel Hagari mentioned, “Hezbollah’s continuous aggression and brutal attacks are dragging the people of Lebanon and the entire Middle East into a wider escalation.”
He added, “While we prefer to resolve hostilities without a wider war, the Israeli army is fully prepared for any scenario.”
Iran condemned the Israeli airstrike on Beirut’s southern suburbs, calling it a “heinous” act.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanaani said in a statement, “The heinous and criminal act by the criminal Zionist gang in the suburbs of Beirut will certainly not prevent the steadfast Lebanese resistance from continuing its honorable path of supporting the oppressed Palestinians and confronting the aggressions of the Israeli apartheid regime.”
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, a potential Democratic candidate for the upcoming presidential elections, stated on Tuesday that Israel “has the right to defend itself” following the strike on Hezbollah’s stronghold in Beirut. Commenting on the strike, Harris told the press that Israel “has the right to defend itself against a terrorist organization, which is exactly what Hezbollah represents.”
