22-04-2025
Two killed in Israeli drone strikes in Lebanon
Two militants were killed on Tuesday in separate Israeli drone strikes in Lebanon, according to security sources.
Lebanon's civil defence agency and police sources said that an Israeli drone struck a vehicle near the town of Baawerta, about 20 kilometres south of the capital, Beirut.
Shortly afterwards, another Israeli drone targeted a truck in the town of Hanniyeh, in southern Lebanon, killing a Hezbollah operative identified as Ali Hashem Kayed, according to security sources.
Footage shared on social media appeared to show the truck being hit by a projectile, followed by a scene in which a man - reportedly the Hezbollah member - is seen running before being targeted again.
The Israeli military later confirmed that the man was a Hezbollah operative, saying the air force had targeted and killed him.
Earlier in the day, Jamaa Islamiya (Islamic Group), a Lebanese Islamist faction allied with the Palestinian group Hamas, confirmed that its member Hussein Izzat Atwi was "assassinated by treacherous Zionist forces" in the drone strike south of Beirut.
The group condemned the killing as a "cowardly crime."
Lebanese security sources also identified Atwi as a prominent commander in the al-Fajr Forces, the armed wing of Jamaa Islamiya.
The Israeli military confirmed the killing of Atwi, describing him as a "significant terrorist" within Jamaa Islamiya.
"Over the years, he carried out rocket attacks, coordinated terrorist infrastructure on the northern front, and advanced infiltration attempts into Israeli territory," the military said, claiming that Atwi had also been involved in directing terrorist attacks against Israelis abroad.
Jamaa Islamiya maintains strong ties with both Hamas in Gaza and Lebanon's Iranian-backed Hezbollah movement.
It has been actively involved in cross-border attacks targeting northern Israel over the past year.
Despite a ceasefire brokered between Israel and Hezbollah in November, Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon have continued in recent months, while rocket fire from Lebanese territory has persisted sporadically - including two unclaimed attacks on March 22 and 28.
Last week, the Lebanese Army announced the arrest of several Lebanese and Palestinian individuals allegedly involved in the rocket attacks. According to security sources, the detainees included three Hamas members.
