The death toll from Israeli airstrikes on Lebanon since October 2023 has reached 2,822, with injuries up to 12,937, the Lebanese Health Ministry reported on Wednesday.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) continued striking Hezbollah targets in southern and eastern Lebanon on Tuesday. In response, Hezbollah fired rockets into northern Israel.
The IDF said in a statement on Wednesday that its Air Forces killed Mustafa Ahmad Shahadi, deputy commander of Hezbollah's elite Radwan Forces, in the area of Nabatieh in southern Lebanon.
The IDF noted that Shahadi, who was targeted based on intelligence, "advanced numerous terror attacks against Israel."
It added that his targeting is part of the Israeli operations aimed at degrading Radwan Forces' capabilities "to direct and execute terror activities against IDF troops and communities in the northern border," in particular a plan to "occupy" the Galilee region in northern Israel.
According to the Israeli army, Shahadi was previously responsible for the Radwan Forces' operations during combat in Syria between 2012 and 2017, and oversaw the forces' operations in southern Lebanon.
Hezbollah has not yet made a comment on the Israeli claim.
Hezbollah's new leader Sheikh Naim Qassem said on Wednesday that he will continue the war strategy adopted by his predecessor Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah by supporting the Gaza front.
Qassem emphasized that supporting Gaza is essential to confront the threat posed by Israel in the region.
While acknowledging that Hezbollah was impacted by the assassination of Nasrallah, Qassem reiterated that the group is capable of filling all vacant positions.
Qassem was elected as the new leader of Hezbollah on Oct 29, following the death of long-time leader Nasrallah, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Beirut on September 27.
Lebanese death toll from Israeli attacks rises to 2,822
