Fresh Israeli airstrikes kills Hamas leader, three other Palestinian militants in Lebanon

Almost 1,000 people have been killed and over 6,000 wounded across Lebanon in latest series of attacks by Israel.

Palestinian militant group Hamas said on Monday that an Israeli strike on southern Lebanon killed one of its senior leaders. 

People and rescue teams search for victims after an Israeli airstrike hit two adjacent buildings, in Ain el-Delb neighbourhood east of the southern port city of Sidon, Lebanon, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024. (AP/PTI)(AP09_30_2024_000012B)(AP)

The Hamas leader has been identified as Fateh Sherif Abu el-Amin, who was killed along with his wife, son and daughter. An Israeli airstrike targeted their house inside a Palestinian refugee camp in the city of Tyre in early hours on Monday.

Three more militants were killed in the strike.

The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), a resistance group fighting Israel alongside Hamas said the group lost three members after an Israeli strike hit the upper floor of an apartment building in Beirut's Kola district. The attack is reportedly the first strike by Israel inside the capital's city limits.

The Israeli military has not commented on the attacks but has vowed to maintain its strikes to make northern Israel ‘safe’ again and enable the return of its citizens to their communities.

Days after killing Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, Israel continued to pound Lebanon on Monday, over areas it claimed as “targets” of the Iran-backed militant group.

Apart from Nasrallah, Israel also killed other senior commanders of the group, including Nabil Kaouk, the deputy head of Hezbollah’s Central Council and Ali Karaki, another senior commander who died alongside Nasrallah. Kaouk became the seventh senior commander of Hezbollah to be killed in over a week of relentless strikes.

Almost 1,000 people have been killed and over 6,000 wounded across Lebanon in latest series of attacks by Israel. Environment Minister Nasser Yassin told the news agency AP that around 2,50,000 people have sought refuge in shelters, and thousands are staying with their kin or camping in open spaces. Prime Minister Najib Mitaki termed the displacement as the “largest disaster” in the country's history.

"One of the biggest challenges is that the government doesn’t have the means to equip the shelters,” said Laila Al Amine, director for Lebanon at humanitarian group Mercy Corps.

Israel also extended its latest round of strikes to Houthi rebels in Yemen's port city of Hodeidah in response to missile attacks by the rebel group. Four people were killed and 29 were injured in the strikes in Yemen on Sunday.

(With inputs from Reuters)