IDF operations in Beirut bring closure for some; Hezbollah terrorists who killed Americans are now dead

JERUSALEM – Israel has secured long-overdue justice for the families of American military and diplomatic personnel murdered by Hezbollah, including in the bombing of the Marine barracks in Beirut.

The initial lack of enthusiasm on the part of the Biden administration and Democratic lawmakers regarding the targeted killings of high-ranking Hezbollah mass murderers sparked criticism from leading counterterrorism experts.

One example is Israel's killing of Ibrahim Aqil on Friday. Aqil was wanted by the United States for both the US embassy bombing that killed 63 people and the 1983 Beirut Marine Barracks bombing that killed 241 US soldiers by the Iran-backed terrorist group Hezbollah.

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The US had put a $7 million bounty on Aqil, the commander of Hezbollah's elite Radwan unit. In July, Israel assassinated Hezbollah's military chief of staff, Fuad Shukr, who, like Aqil, was involved in the 1983 Beirut bombings.

Former US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo wrote on X: “The families of the Marines killed in Beirut have waited decades for justice. I am grateful that Israel helped bring it about by taking out one of the world's most vicious terrorists – Ibrahim Aqil. This should be a message to Iran and its proxies everywhere.”

A Washington Post report quoted Ryan Crocker, whose office was on the fourth floor of the embassy at the time of the explosion, as saying of Aqil's death: “It still gives me satisfaction that he finally got it.” Crocker later served as U.S. ambassador to Syria, Iraq and several other countries.

Max Abrahms, a leading counterterrorism expert and professor of political science at Northeastern University, told Fox News Digital: “Targeted killings have been a cornerstone of the U.S. counterterrorism effort since the 9/11 attacks. And yet Israel's killing of Hezbollah terrorists with American blood on their hands is being condemned by Democratic leaders.”

He added: “The fact that even targeted killings of terrorists with blood-stained hands are being condemned by the Americans exposes the democratic leadership, which spent the last year pretending to be against the post-7/10 Gaza campaign because of its negative impact on the Palestinian population. As we have seen, the democratic leadership is against all Israeli counterterrorism measures, even when they are perfectly implemented and exclude any harm to the civilian population.”

Rescue workers used excavators to clear away rubble at the site of Friday's Israeli attack in Beirut's southern suburbs on Saturday. (AP/Bilal Hussein)

Criticism of the Biden administration's initially lackluster response to Aqil's killing on Friday appeared to prompt a response from U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, who called Aqil's death “a good outcome” on Saturday.

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“This man has American blood on his hands and a reward for justice on his head,” Sullivan said. He added: “The United States promised him long ago that we would do everything we can to bring him to justice.”

John Kirby, communications adviser to the White House National Security Council, told “Fox News Sunday with Shannon Bream”: “Nobody, including Secretary Austin, is shedding a tear over the death of Mr. Aqil, who has American blood on his hands. I think the world is a better place because he is no longer walking this planet. But that does not mean we want to see an all-out war. We no longer believe that is in the best interests of the Israeli people.”

The United States was searching for Ibrahim Aqil and was offering up to $7 million for information about him through the U.S. State Department's Diplomatic Security Service Rewards for Justice program. (U.S. Department of State Diplomatic Security Service Justice Rewards Program.)

David Wurmser, former senior adviser for nonproliferation and Middle East strategy to former Vice President Dick Cheney, told Fox News Digital: “The success of Israel's goals is a multifaceted American interest. First, the deaths of so many prominent Hezbollah leaders also involve the deaths of many people on American wanted lists, many of whom have large bounties on their heads. Despite the bounties, however, it was clear that the United States had long ago given up any effort to bring any of these killers of American soldiers, diplomats and intelligence officials to justice. Their mass murder by Israel in the space of two or three days only further highlights the gap between the lofty rhetoric of the American foreign policy establishment over half a century and the more dishonorable reality.”

He added: “The fact that the United States is now adopting a de-escalation stance – which equates our democratic allies with the terrorists on whose hands the blood of thousands of Americans is – is simply disgraceful. At least our loyal soldiers have now been avenged, if not by our own forces, but by Israel.”

Wurmser noted: “In the Middle East, we are fortunate to have a powerful and loyal ally in Israel that shares our values ​​and is encouraging a number of other friendly states to forge a regional alliance to confront the unstable forces in the region, especially the Iranian regime.”

Matthew Levitt, director of the Reinhard Program on Counterterrorism and Intelligence at the Washington Institute, told Fox News Digital: “In a short period of time, Israel recently eliminated Hezbollah terrorists who were there from the beginning and were involved in attacks against Americans in the 1980s. US intelligence has been tracking these people for decades.”

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He added: “But these attacks also have very current implications, as Fuad Shukr and Ibrahim Aqil have been leading the Islamic Jihad organisation as a triumvirate alongside Ali Karaki since the death of Mustafa Badreddine in Syria several years ago. They were foot soldiers in the 1980s and rose to the highest ranks of the organisation.”

Lisa Daftari, an Iranian-American expert on the Islamic Republic and editor-in-chief of the Foreign Desk, told Fox News Digital: “With the elimination of Ibrahim Aqil, Israel has once again demonstrated its unwavering commitment to the fight against global terrorism – a fight that serves the interests of all nations committed to combating radical extremism.”

Ibrahim Aqil, another senior Hezbollah terror chief, was killed in the airstrike alongside Ahmed Wahbi. (Hezbollah Military Media via AP)

She added: “The Biden administration should openly praise Israel's efforts and provide strong support, rather than calling for restraint. It is critical to recognize that we can achieve peace if groups like Hezbollah and Hamas cease hostilities. But if Israel ceases its operations now, it will continue to endure relentless terrorism, similar to the October 7 attacks. Our collective security depends on Israel's determination to eliminate these threats.”

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Retired Marine Corps Sergeant Major Steve Aitken, who was stationed on a boat offshore as the injured were transferred to ships for medical treatment after the terrorist attack, told the Washington Post that Aqil's death was “God's judgment,” adding: “You may get away with it, but you will not get through it… Our memory is long. Israel's is even longer.”

Senator Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) also emphasized the significance of Israel's killing of Aqil, writing on X: “Ibrahim Aqil was a vicious terrorist mastermind who helped murder hundreds of Americans. On behalf of the families of the Marines killed in the Beirut bombings – and on behalf of all Americans – I am grateful that this murderer has finally received justice.”

Aqil also oversaw Hezbollah's operations in Syria, where he enabled Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad to wipe out hundreds of thousands of his own Arab citizens.