The Iranian-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah informed about the death of the commander of its missile division Ibrahim Qubaisi, but did not confirm that it was due to an Israeli strike on Beirut, Lebanon.
This is reported by the Qatari TV channel Al Jazeera.
Hezbollah also reported the death of another operative believed to have been killed along with Qubaisi.
Ibrahim Qubaisi
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) yesterday informed about the elimination of Qubaisi along with several other commanders of the Hezbollah Missile Forces.
IDF notes that Qubaisi commanded several Hezbollah missile units, including a high-precision missile unit, and for years, particularly during the war, was responsible for launching missiles toward Israel. He also had close ties with high-ranking military leaders of Hezbollah.
What preceded
On September 17, hundreds of pagers belonging to Hezbollah members exploded in Lebanon. Because of this, 12 people died, almost 3 thousand were injured. Reuters, citing sources, writes that Israelʼs foreign intelligence service Mossad planted explosives in 5 000 pagers imported by the Lebanese Hezbollah group a few months before the explosions. ABC News notes that Israel has been preparing for the operation for at least 15 years. Israelʼs president officially denied the countryʼs involvement in blowing up pagers in Lebanon.
On September 18, a repeated series of explosions thundered in Lebanon. Walkie-talkies used by members of the Lebanese Hezbollah group and car radios were detonated. 14 people died, another 450 were injured. On the same day, Israel informed about a "new phase" of the war — it would be fought mainly in the north of the country, which borders Lebanon. Since then, firefights between IDF and Hezbollah have intensified.
On September 20, IDF struck the high command of the Lebanese Hezbollah group in Beirut. The death toll as of September 22 is 45. In response to this attack, Hezbollah launched about 85 rockets from Lebanon on the night of September 22.
- In the north, Israel borders Lebanon, where the Iranian-backed Hezbollah group operates. Hezbollah and Israel have been attacking each other since the start of the Gaza war in October 2023.
- Hezbollah is a Lebanese Shia Muslim military-political organization founded in 1982. Hezbollah is actively supported by Iran, it is recognized as a terrorist in more than 20 countries, in particular, in the USA, EU and Great Britain. Hezbollah has been against Israel since its inception.