Another top Hezbollah official liquidated – Israel

Nabil Qaouk served as the commander of the group’s Preventive Security Unit, the IDF has said

The Israeli military has claimed to have eliminated another senior Hezbollah official, Nabil Qaouk, who sat on the group’s Central Council. This comes after West Jerusalem recently assassinated Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah and reported taking out most of the organization's military leadership.

In a statement on Sunday, The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said that an air raid the previous day “attacked and killed the terrorist” Qaouk, who also led Hezbollah’s Preventive Security Unit.

Qaouk, the IDF said, “is considered to be close to the top” of Hezbollah, and “was directly involved in promoting terrorist acts against the State of Israel and its citizens, even in recent days.” It added that the Hezbollah official joined the group in the 1980s and held several executive posts in southern Lebanon.

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“The IDF continues to attack and eliminate the commanders of the terrorist organization Hezbollah, and to act against anyone who threatens the citizens of the State of Israel,” the statement added.

Hezbollah has yet to comment on the Israeli claim.

Meanwhile, Iran has confirmed reports that the Israeli strike also killed Abbas Nilforoushan, a deputy commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). “This vicious and cowardly act is another clear sign of the terrorist and criminal nature of the Zionist regime… and without a doubt, this horrible crime of the aggressor Zionist regime will never go unanswered,” the Foreign Ministry said.

On Saturday, Israel carried out a bombing raid on a Hezbollah compound in Beirut, killing Nasrallah, who had been an archenemy of the Jewish State for decades. Officials in West Jerusalem also said that more than a dozen senior Hezbollah military figures had been taken out in recent weeks.

Meanwhile, ABC News reported over the weekend, citing US officials, that Israel may launch a “very limited” incursion into southern Lebanon soon. While the outlet did not provide details on the exact time frame or goals of the operation, the area is often used by Hezbollah for firing rockets across the border and is considered a hub for the group’s other military activities.