BEIRUT, Jan 8: Israel killed a senior commander of the Hezbollah organisation, which is supported by Iran, in an attack on southern Lebanon, a security source said AFP, heightening concerns that the Gaza battle may get worse. The security officer, who asked to remain anonymous due to security concerns, stated that the commander “had a leading role in managing Hezbollah’s operations in the south.” He “was killed in an Israeli strike targeting his car in the south,” the spokesman continued. According to the official, the commander occupied multiple other prominent roles within the Shia movement. Following the start of the Israel-Hamas conflict on October 7, Hezbollah and its fierce rival Israel have been exchanging gunfire across the border almost every day.However, there are now concerns about a wider conflict following the assassination of Hamas’ deputy leader in Beirut last week. In the first attack on Beirut since the conflict began, Saleh al-Aruri, the most well-known Hamas figure to die, was killed in a missile strike that was largely blamed to Israel. In an effort to keep Lebanon out of the Israel-Hamas crisis, European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell met with a political representative of Hezbollah on Saturday in Beirut. According to an AFP count, over 180 individuals have died in Lebanon as a result of cross-border gunfire in over three months. This number includes over 135 Hezbollah militants as well as over 20 civilian deaths, including three journalists.Israeli officials report that four civilians and nine troops have died in northern Israel.
