2024-01-02 21:06:03
The number two of the Islamist Palestinian organization Hamas, Saleh al-Aruri, was killed on Tuesday in a drone strike attributed to Israel in a Beirut suburb, according to several sources. This was announced by two Lebanese security representatives and Hamas. A TV station close to Hamas reported in the evening that two other high-ranking Hamas members were also killed in the suspected Israeli attack.
According to the television station, these are the commanders Samir Fandi Abu Amer and Assam al-Akra Abu Ammar of the group’s armed wing. Hamas itself said two leaders of its Qassam brigade were killed. It also confirmed the death of one of its leaders, Hamas politburo deputy head Saleh al-Aruri.
In total, six people were killed in Tuesday’s incident, according to Lebanon’s state news agency NNA. The exact reasons behind the explosion initially remained unclear. The suspicion quickly arose that it might be a targeted killing – possibly by Israel’s army or on Israel’s behalf. Israel’s military did not comment on the reports when asked.
In addition to Saleh al-Aruri, his bodyguards were also killed in the drone attack, the two Lebanese security representatives said. So far, clashes between the Israeli army and the Lebanese Hezbollah militia – an ally of the Palestinian Hamas – have been limited to the border areas in southern Lebanon.
Aruri was killed along with his bodyguards in the attack on the Hamas office on the southern outskirts of Beirut, one of the security officials said. The area is considered a stronghold of the pro-Iranian Hezbollah militia.
Hamas reported the “assassination” of al-Arouri in its official media. “Hamas’ political bureau vice-president Sheikh Saleh al-Aruri was martyred in a Zionist attack in Beirut,” Hamas announced on its official television channel, Al-Aqsa TV, and its other media outlets.
Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati spoke of an “Israeli crime.” He accused Israel of wanting to drag Lebanon into a “new phase of confrontation,” according to a statement released by his office.
Aruri, whom Israel blames for planning numerous attacks, was elected deputy to Hamas Politburo chief Ismail Haniya in 2017. This officially made him the number two Islamist organization.
After being imprisoned in Israeli prisons for almost 20 years, he was released in 2010 on the condition that he go into exile. Since then, like many other Hamas representatives, he has lived in Lebanon. According to eyewitnesses, his empty house in the West Bank was destroyed with explosives by the Israeli army in October.
Israel and Hamas have been at war for almost three months. The trigger was a major attack on Israel by Hamas, which is classified as a terrorist organization by the USA and the EU, in which around 1,140 people were killed on October 7th and around 250 others were kidnapped as hostages in the Gaza Strip.
In response to the major Hamas attack, Israel has been bombing targets in the Gaza Strip since October 9th and also began a ground offensive – with the aim of destroying the radical Islamic organization. More than 22,100 people have been killed in the Gaza Strip since then, according to recent figures from the Hamas Ministry of Health, which cannot be independently verified. The Israeli military, for its part, reports 173 soldiers killed.
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