At least two Hezbollah members were killed today (Monday) in two attacks near the party's main stronghold of Baalbek in eastern Lebanon, two security sources told Agence France-Presse. This is the first time in the region since the offensive began.
A security source told the agency that one of the raids “targeted a building owned by a civilian organization for Hezbollah on the outskirts of Baalbek city,” while the second targeted a “warehouse” for the party. A second security source told the agency that the blast resulted in “the killing of two Hezbollah members.”
“The IDF conducted raids deep into Lebanon targeting Hezbollah targets,” Israeli military spokesman Avichai Adre told Arab media.
#Urgent The IDF conducts strikes deep into Lebanon targeting Hezbollah targets. followed later
— Avichai Adraee (@AvichaiAdraee) February 26, 2024
On January 2, Israel launched a strike targeting an apartment complex in the southern suburbs of Beirut, a Hezbollah stronghold, killing Saleh al-Aruri, deputy head of the Hamas political bureau, and six of his companions.
Today's strikes on Baalbek came shortly after Hezbollah announced that it had “shot down a large Hormuz 450 Israeli drone with a surface-to-air missile in the Iqlim al-Tufa area” about 20 kilometers from the border. .
Since the day after Hamas's unprecedented attack on Israel on October 7, the Lebanese border has seen an escalation between Hezbollah and Israel. Hezbollah announces that it is targeting Israeli bases, intelligence equipment and military bases in support of Gaza and “in support of its resistance”.
The Israeli military is retaliating with aerial and artillery bombardment, which it says targets the party's “infrastructure” and militant movements near the border.
