Hezbollah has dismissed Israeli claims that it has killed half of the group's commanders in southern Lebanon.
The Israeli military said it had struck dozens of targets in southern Lebanon, and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah said it had fired dozens of rockets at villages on the Israeli border, where fighting continues to rage.
The Israeli military said its airstrikes in the Aita al-Shaab area, about 3 kilometers inside the Lebanese border, hit about 40 targets, including storage facilities and weapons in the area, which were widely used by Hezbollah forces. did.
“Continued attacks are being carried out by [Israeli military] It has deployed troops throughout southern Lebanon and other parts of Lebanon. The results of the operation are very impressive,” Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said in a statement Wednesday after a strategy meeting at the military's Northern Command.
Gallant said half of Hezbollah commanders in southern Lebanon were killed by Israeli forces, a claim condemned by Iranian-backed groups.
Hezbollah officials dismissed the claims as “totally worthless” and were aimed at boosting Israeli morale. He said the group regularly published photos and biographical details of members killed in combat.
Israeli airstrikes have killed around 250 Hezbollah fighters in Lebanon since October, with another 30 killed in Israeli airstrikes in neighboring Syria. More than 70 civilians were killed in Lebanon, and 18 people were killed in Israel, including soldiers and civilians.
The movement held a funeral on Wednesday for its senior commander, Hussein Azkour, who was killed by Israeli forces earlier this week. Speaking at the funeral, senior Hezbollah politician Hassan Fadlallah praised Azkour for his role in developing Hezbollah's drone and missile capabilities and taking the fight against Israel to a “new level”.
The Israeli airstrike came a day after Hezbollah launched a drone attack on an Israeli military base north of the Israeli coastal city of Acre. This was the most serious attack in hostilities that escalated in tandem with the Gaza war.
Hezbollah fired Katyusha rockets into the village of Shomera on Wednesday in response to Israeli military attacks on Lebanese villages, including an attack on Hanin the day before, killing at least two people, including an 11-year-old girl.
Although recent hostilities have been the worst in years, violence has been largely confined to areas near the Israeli-Lebanese border, with Israel occasionally carrying out attacks deep into the Bekaa Valley in eastern Lebanon. ing.
