Israel confirms the death of two senior Hamas officials in attacks in Lebanon

Attacks in Lebanon! The Israeli Army confirmed the death of two senior Hamas officials in different attacks throughout this Saturday, in coordinated operations between the armed forces and the internal intelligence agency, the Shin Bet.

“The Air Force attacked and eliminated the terrorist Muhammad Hussein Ali al Mahmud, who was part of the Hamas executive authority in Lebanon and directed terrorist activities in Judea and Samaria (West Bank),” the Army reported on the first of the attacks, of which he did not give more details.

The military claims that Muhammad was responsible for Hamas in the Lebanon.

The other deceased is Said Alaa Naif Ali, a veteran member of the armed wing of Hamas who is accused of recruiting militiamen for the organization in the neighboring country, and whose death was already reported by Arab media this morning.

Attacks in Lebanon

Naif Ali died in a bombing against the city of Tripoli, in northern Lebanon and with a Sunni Muslim majority – while Hezbollah is Shiite in character. It is Israel’s first attack on the city since the 2006 war.

Attacks in Lebanon

The military says these operations are part of its efforts to eliminate Hamas’ threat to Israel, and that they constitute a blow to the Islamist organization’s ability to attack Israel from Lebanese territory.

Israel and the Shiite group Hezbollah had maintained a constant exchange of fire since October last year, which intensified more than ten days ago with an Israeli bombing campaign on Lebanese territory, which reached its peak last Friday when the leader of the organization, Hasan Nasrallah.

Since the start of hostilities, Israel’s attacks in the south, the Bekaa Valley and the capital, Beirut, have killed nearly 2,000 people and forced 1.2 million from their homes, mainly in the south and the east of the Mediterranean country.