Israel Kills Hezbollah’s Logistics Chief Amid Reports Of Near Large Attack On Lebanon (Video)

Illustrative image. (Israeli Defense Forces)

The Israeli Air Force killed Hezbollah’s south Lebanon logistics chief Abbas Hassan Karaki in a drone strike on October 24, amid reports of ongoing preparations by the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) for a large attack against the country.

Karaki was targeted in the southern town of Toul. Lebanon’s health ministry said the drone strike killed two people and wounded two others.

In a statement, the IDF said that Karaki was the head of logistics in Hezbollah’s so-called Southern Front, and held other senior roles in the group in recent years.

Karaki’s actions had “constituted a violation of the understandings between Israel and Lebanon” under the November 27 Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire agreement brokered by the United States, which required the group to withdraw from south Lebanon, according to the military.

“The IDF will continue to act to remove all threats against the State of Israel,” the military said.

It added that Karaki “led and advanced efforts to rebuild” Hezbollah’s capabilities in southern Lebanon; restored infrastructure that had been destroyed during the fighting last year; and was responsible for “rebuilding the organization’s force structure and managing the transfer and storage of weapons in southern Lebanon.”

Lebanese media revealed that Karaki was related to Ali Karaki, the former chief of the Southern Front who was assassinated alongside Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah last year.

The assassination came just a day after the IDF said it carried out strikes across Lebanon against Hezbollah sites, including an arms cache, a missile factory and a training camp. At least four people were killed in the strikes, including an elderly woman.

The IDF has been launching strikes against Hezbollah on a regular basis since the U.S.-brokered ceasefire came into effect, citing “violations” by the group.

On October 24, an Israeli security official told Sky News Arabia that the IDF submitted 1,734 complaints to the Cessation of Hostilities Committee regarding “violations” by Hezbollah.

“The Lebanese military was asked to address 840 of these complaints. The Lebanese military stated that 528 complaints were addressed,” the source said. “The Israeli military itself dealt with 88 complaints. In 812 cases, complaints were submitted after Israel had already dealt with them.”

The official added that “452 violations were addressed at the initiative of the Lebanese military,” noting that “more than 320 Hezbollah operatives have been killed since the agreement came into effect.”

The Lebanese government approved in August a plan to disarm Hezbollah in line with a proposal presented by the U.S.. And in September, the government announced that it has begun to implement the plan. Hezbollah, however, rejected any talk of disarmament.

Another report from Sky News Arabia from October 24 cited European officials as saying that a “large-scale Israeli strike against Lebanon may only be a matter of time.” The officials added that it is unclear how Israel will treat the Lebanese government, noting that it could consider it to be complicit in Hezbollah’s “violations” or unable to stop them.

Since a ceasefire entered into effect in the Gaza Strip earlier this year, it became clear that Israel will again focus on Hezbollah. A renewal of fighting between the two sides seems inevitable.

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