UPDATES WITH HEZBOLLAH STATEMENT, HEADLINE AND DECK CHANGED
By Zein Khalil
JERUSALEM (AA) – The Israeli army on Monday evening confirmed that it had carried out airstrikes on the outskirts of Beirut, with Israeli media claiming that the airstrikes targeted a top military commander in the Lebanese group Hezbollah.
The development came as Israeli army fighter jets carried out intense and deadly airstrikes on southern and eastern Lebanon.
Lebanese health authorities said at least 492 people, including 35 children, have been killed and 1,645 others injured in Israeli attacks since Monday morning, with thousands of civilians forced to flee their homes.
Israeli forces intensified their attacks on Lebanon, ignoring the international community's warnings that they would risk spreading the Gaza conflict to other regions.
Israeli Army Radio quoted military sources saying that airstrikes on a southern suburb of Beirut had targeted Ali Karaki, a Hezbollah top military commander.
No further details on the fate of Karaki were forthcoming, however.
Following Israeli media claims, Hezbollah confirmed in a statement that its top military commander Ali Karaki is alive and has been moved to a safer location.
On Friday, the Israeli army carried out a deadly airstrike that killed at least 50 people, including children and women, and injured dozens in Beirut’s southern suburb.
Hezbollah confirmed that at least 16 of its members, including senior military leader Ibrahim Aqil and top commander Ahmed Wahbi, were killed in the Israeli airstrike.
Hezbollah and Israel have been engaged in cross-border warfare since the start of the Israeli war on Gaza, which has killed over 41,400 people, mostly women and children, following a cross-border attack by Hamas last Oct. 7.
*Writing by Ahmed Asmar