Israel admits killing senior Hezbollah commander Wissam al-Tawil

By Zein Khalil

JERUSALEM (AA) - Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz has admitted that Israel is behind the killing of senior Hezbollah commander Wissam al-Tawil.

Speaking to the far-right Channel 14 late Monday, he said: "Yes, we did take responsibility for the assassination of the commander."

"This is part of the war," he added. "We're targeting Hezbollah operatives, infrastructure, and systems they've set up to deter Israel."

Early in the day, the Hezbollah said al-Tawil, 58, was killed in the town of Khirbet Selm, southern Lebanon. The Lebanese state-run National News Agency said the attack was carried out by an Israeli drone.

The killing came days after the deputy chief of Palestinian group Hamas, Saleh al-Arouri, was killed in a suspected Israeli airstrike in Beirut.

Katz also threatened Lebanon for consequences far more than the war in 2006, but said Israel was not interested in escalating tensions.

"We need to act to remove the threat on the northern border and create the conditions that will allow its residents to return home safely," the minister added.

Hezbollah and Israel have been exchanging fire along the Lebanese-Israeli border since the Oct. 7 cross-border attack by Hamas, but the recent killings of senior commanders have stoked fresh fears of escalation.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar​​​​​​​