By Abdelsalam Fayez
ISTANBUL (AA) - Four Hezbollah members were killed in border clashes with Israel, the Lebanese group said on Tuesday amid fears of a full-blown war between the two sides.
The group identified the slain fighters as Hasan Mansour, Ali Shamsddine, Hussein Yasin and Amin Badreddine, without providing details about the circumstances of their death.
Tension has escalated between Hezbollah and Israel since Tel Aviv assassinated senior military commander Fouad Shukr in an airstrike in Beirut’s southern suburb on July 30.
Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh was also assassinated in the Iranian capital Tehran the following day. Iran and Hamas accused Israel of carrying out Haniyeh’s assassination, while Tel Aviv has not yet confirmed or denied its responsibility.
Hezbollah has vowed to retaliate the killing of Shukr as cross-border fire between the two sides continued to rage in the deadliest clashes since the two sides fought a full-scale war in 2006.
At least 398 Hezbollah fighters have been killed by Israeli fire since their border clashes first erupted on Oct. 8, 2023, according to an Anadolu tally.
The escalation comes against the backdrop of an Israeli onslaught on Gaza which has killed more than 39,600 people since last October following an attack by Hamas.
*Writing by Ahmed Asmar