Israel claims to have killed Hezbollah commander in Lebanon strike

ANKARA

The Israeli army claimed on Wednesday to have killed a senior Hezbollah commander in an airstrike in southern Lebanon.

A military statement said warplanes targeted the Hezbollah commander in the Qaaqaait al-Jisr area, without identifying him.

The Lebanese Health Ministry, for its part, confirmed that one person was killed in an Israeli strike on a car in southern Lebanon.

There was no immediate comment from Hezbollah on the report.

A fragile ceasefire has been in place in Lebanon since November, ending months of cross-border warfare between Israel and Hezbollah, which escalated into a full-scale conflict in September.

Lebanese authorities have reported nearly 3,000 Israeli violations of the truce, including the deaths of nearly 200 people and the injuries of around 500 others.

Under the ceasefire deal, Israel was supposed to fully withdraw from southern Lebanon by Jan. 26, but the deadline was extended to Feb. 18 after Israel refused to comply. It still maintains a military presence at five border outposts.