Hamas number two Saleh al-Aruri, who lived in exile in Lebanon, was killed in a drone strike on Tuesday in a suburb of Beirut, the capital of Lebanon, attributed to Israel, Reuters and The Times of Israel said. . Aruri, the exiled commander of Hamas forces in the occupied West Bank and a veteran Hamas leader who spent 17 years in Israeli prisons, was deputy to the Islamist group’s leader, Ismail Haniyeh. So far, Israel has not released any official information regarding the killing of Saleh al-Aruri, six people were killed in the attack.

This is the first time since the beginning of the war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip – the war continues for the 88th day – the Israeli army attacks the capital of Lebanon, Reuters and AFP note. Clashes between the Israeli army and Lebanon’s Hezbollah, a group allied to Palestinian Hamas, have so far been confined to the border areas in southern Lebanon.

Hamas leader accuses Hezbollah of “terrorist act”: “This crime will never go unanswered and unpunished”

23:26 Hezbollah threatened to retaliate after the killing of Hamas deputy leader Saleh al-Aruri, saying “this crime will never go unanswered and unpunished,” The Times of Israel reported.

“Almighty God ended the career of this great leader with the highest medals of honor and dignity and achieved the martyrdom he longed for and longed for,” Hezbollah said of Aruri.

The terrorist group accuses Israel of “a serious attack on Lebanon, its people, its security and sovereignty, with a dangerous evolution in the course of the war between the enemy and the axis of resistance.”

Hezbollah also claims that such killings will only strengthen the Palestinian resistance movement.

10:16 in the eveningAccording to The Guardian , Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh made a powerful statement on television Tuesday night, accusing Israel of an “act of terrorism” following the death of the group’s leader, Saleh al-Aruri, in Lebanon.

“The murder by the Zionist occupiers of the great national leader and brave fighter Saleh al-Aruri, as well as some of his brothers among the leaders and cadres of the movement on the territory of Lebanon, is a typical terrorist act, a violation of Lebanese rights. sovereignty and the expansion of his aggression against the people and our nation,” Ismail Haniyeh said.

He claimed that his group “will never be defeated”: “The movement, whose leaders and founders are martyrs for the dignity of our people and nation, will never be defeated. This is a story of resistance and a movement that becomes even stronger and more determined after the assassination of its leaders.”

21:46Hours after the alleged assassination of Hamas leader Saleh al-Aruri in Lebanon, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari began his briefing by saying the military was at a “very high level of preparedness for any scenario,” without admitting the killing of the leader of Hamas, he Guardian and The Times of Israel write.

He did not mention al-Aruri, writes the Times of Israel. In addition, Israel has not released any official information regarding the killing of a second member of Hamas in Beirut.

“The most important thing to say tonight is that we are focused and remain focused on fighting Hamas,” Hagari said.

Along with Saleh al-Aruri, two leaders of Al-Qassam Hamas armed brigades were killed

21:38And The Times of Israel writes with reference to the Arab press that the two Hamas leaders killed along with Saleh al-Aruri were identified as Samir Findi and Azzam Al-Akraa.

21:30 The two leaders of the Al-Qassam Hamas armed brigades, who were killed along with Saleh al-Aruri, during the Israeli attack, are Samir Findi Abu Amer and Azzam al-Akraa Abu Ammar, Reuters writes with reference to the Hamas Al-Aqsa TV channel.

21:12 Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani condemns the “vile” killing of Hamas deputy leader Saleh al-Aruri by Israel, writes The Times of Israel.

“The blood of the martyr will surely ignite another wave in the veins of resistance and motivate the struggle against the Zionist occupiers not only in Palestine, but in the region and among all freedom seekers around the world,” Kanaani said.

US representative: Israel is “responsible” for the explosion in Beirut

21:03 Representatives of the US Department of Defense have already concluded that Israel is “responsible” for the explosion in Beirut that killed a high-ranking Hamas official, writes The Guardian with reference to The Washington Post.

The newspaper quoted a “senior US defense official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of confidential operations,” who said the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) was responsible for the strike on Arura, and that the IDF was now conducting “an assessment to determine whether he was killed “.

The Washington Post also writes that among the six dead, along with Saleh al-Aruri, are two leaders of the elite Al-Qassam Hamas brigades.

20:26 Israel is awaiting an answer to the alleged murder of senior Hamas official Saleh al-Aruri in Lebanon, Hebrew-language media reported, The Times of Israel writes.

The Walla news site and News Channel 13 say Israel expects retaliation, including firing long-range missiles at Israel.

20:20 In the context of Israel’s alleged assassination of Hamas deputy leader Saleh al-Aruri in Lebanon, a clip from an August speech by Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah has reappeared on social networks, reports The Times of Israel: “Any. the killing of citizens of Syria, Iran or Palestine on Lebanese soil will receive a decisive response. We will not tolerate this and will not allow Lebanon to become a new crime scene for Israel.”​​​​

Nasrallah was scheduled to deliver a nationally televised speech on Wednesday.

……………..

Lebanon’s state-run news agency said a drone attack targeted a Hamas office on the southern outskirts of Beirut, killing six people. According to preliminary data, four people died.

Among those killed was senior Hamas official Saleh al-Aruri, three security sources told Reuters. And The Times of Israel writes about the murder of Saleh al-Aruri.

“Surgical strike on the leadership of Hamas”

The Israeli military has yet to comment. Mark Regev, an adviser to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, told MSNBC that Israel had not claimed responsibility for the attack, but “whoever did, they should make it clear that this was not an attack on the Lebanese state, surgical blow. against the leadership of Hamas,” writes Reuters.

Saleh al-Aruri would be killed along with his bodyguards in an attack on the outskirts of Beirut, known as a Hezbollah stronghold. Hamas has an office in the southern suburbs of the Lebanese capital, which is considered a stronghold of the pro-Iranian Hezbollah.

Hezbollah’s Manar TV channel reported that the explosion occurred near Hadi Nasrallah Highway, not far from the interchange. He did not provide details of the attack, which came a day before a speech by Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah.

Reuters writes that the explosion was allegedly caused by a drone that hit the second floor of a building in a crowded area.

“New Israeli crime”

The terrorist group Hamas confirmed the killing of its deputy leader Saleh al-Aruri by Israeli forces.

“The cowardly murders perpetrated by the Zionist occupation against the leaders and symbols of our Palestinian people in Palestine and beyond will not be able to break the will and determination of our people or undermine the continuation of their courageous resistance,” said Izzat al-Rishk, a senior Hamas official.

He claims that the strike “once again proves the enemy’s pathetic inability to achieve any of its aggressive goals in the Gaza Strip.”

Acting Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati called the attack “a new Israeli crime,” saying it was an attempt to drag Lebanon into war.

Who was Saleh al-Aruri

Saleh al-Aruri was 57 years old.

Saleh al-Aruri, whom Israel accuses of organizing numerous terrorist attacks, was elected deputy head of the Hamas political bureau Ismail Haniyeh in 2017, officially becoming the number 2 in the Islamist movement.

After spending almost twenty years in Israeli prisons, Saleh al-Aruri was released in 2010 on parole. He was based in Lebanon.

Aruri was also the founder of Hamas’s military wing in the West Bank and, according to the Associated Press, was a target of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu even before the Islamist group launched attacks on Israel on October 7.

Saleh al-Aruri led the Hamas delegation in successive reconciliation talks with Fatah, a rival pro-Palestinian military-political group, and helped negotiate the release of captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit in 2011 in exchange for 1,027 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.

He joined Hamas in 1987 and led an Islamic student movement before helping to establish Hamas’s military wing in the West Bank. He was repeatedly detained by Israel, including for long periods, between 1985 and 1992 and between 1992 and 2007.

The Times of Israel reports that Israeli intelligence officials believe he helped plan the kidnapping and murder of three Israeli teenagers — Gilad Shaar, Eyal Yifrah and Naftali Frankel — in June 2014, and planned many other attacks.

In late October, the Israeli army announced that it had destroyed Saleh al-Aruri’s family home by blowing up the building. According to local residents quoted by Reuters, Saleh al-Aruri’s house was in the village of Arura, located about 20 kilometers north of Ramallah, and was deserted.

The Israel Defense Forces also released a video saying the footage showed the destruction of the home of Hamas’ second leader.