Hamas confirms the killing of al-Qassam's commander, his wife and children in an Israeli airstrike in Lebanon

BEIRUT

Hamas in Lebanon confirmed on Saturday morning the death of a senior commander of its military wing, the Al-Qassam Brigades, in an Israeli airstrike on his residence in the Beddawi refugee camp in northern Lebanon.

According to an Anadolu correspondent, the airstrike targeted the home of Saeed Ali, a senior commander of the Al-Qassam Brigades.

The bombing resulted in the deaths of Ali, his wife Shaimaa Khalil Azzam and their two daughters Zeinab and Fatima.

In a statement, Hamas said that “the Israeli airstrike targeted the residence of Saeed Ali and resulted in his martyrdom along with his family.”

“Israel’s leadership will pay for their criminal decisions against our people,” it said.

Ali's killing follows the assassination of Fatah Sharif, another Hamas leader in Lebanon, who was killed in a similar Israeli airstrike on his home in the Burj al-Shemali camp in southern Lebanon earlier this week.

Since the conflict between Hezbollah and Israel began in October 2023, Israel has carried out a series of airstrikes against Hamas officials and Al-Qassam members in Lebanon. One of the most notable attacks was the assassination of Saleh al-Arouri, Hamas' deputy leader, on January 2, 2024, in a drone strike on the southern suburbs of Beirut.

Hezbollah and Israel have been waging cross-border wars since the start of Israel's war on Gaza, which killed over 41,800 people, most of them women and children, after an attack by the Palestinian group Hamas last October.

Since then, at least 2,011 people have been killed, over 9,500 injured and 1.2 million more displaced, according to Lebanese authorities.

The international community has warned that Israeli attacks in Lebanon could escalate the Gaza conflict into a larger regional war.

*Writing by Ikram Kouachi

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