Hezbollah confirmed that its media relations chief, Mohammad Afif, was killed in an Israeli airstrike on a building in central Beirut on Sunday.
Israeli strikes rarely target senior Hezbollah members without clear military roles, and typically focus on the group’s strongholds in southern Beirut. The Israeli military, which initially declined to comment, later acknowledged eliminating Afif.
The Lebanese health ministry reported one death and three injuries from the strike.
Later on Sunday, a second Israeli attack struck the Mar Elias area in central Beirut, an area not commonly targeted.
At least two people were killed and 22 others injured, according to the Lebanese health ministry.
Hezbollah and Israel have been engaged in cross-border exchanges since October 2023, following Hamas’ attack on southern Israel, which killed approximately 1,200 Israelis.
In September 2023, Israel escalated its military actions in Lebanon, heavily bombing southern and eastern areas and the southern suburbs of Beirut, alongside border incursions.
The Lebanese health ministry reported that Israel’s campaign in Lebanon over the past year has resulted in 3,841 deaths and nearly 15,000 injuries, though the toll includes both civilians and combatants.
Hezbollah’s rocket attacks on Israel have claimed the lives of dozens of Israelis, both military and civilian. Meanwhile, Israel’s separate assault on Gaza, in its ongoing war with Hamas, has resulted in more than 43,000 Palestinian deaths, mostly civilians.
The escalation has also led to casualties among the Lebanese military. On Sunday, two Lebanese soldiers were killed in an Israeli strike on an army post in Al-Mari, a southern Lebanese town.
