New level of warfare just remotely detonated in Lebanon/Syria

[EndtheMadnessNow]

Operation beeper goes to Air Strike package...

An Israeli official said that the entire senior command of Hezbollah's Radwan force was eliminated in the strike (around 20 commanders) including one the leader's involved in the 1983 Beirut bombing of Marine barracks.

The Israeli military said it killed top Hezbollah military commanders, including the militia's head of operations Ibrahim Aqil, on Friday in an airstrike on a southern Beirut neighborhood. Lebanon's health ministry said at least 12 people were killed and dozens more were wounded.

The big picture: The strike in Beirut is further escalating the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, risking an all-out war.

    Hezbollah has not confirmed Aqil's death.

    The IDF said Aqil was the head of Hezbollah's military operations and the commander of the elite Radwan Forces, and was killed along with other commanders in the unit.

    An Israeli official said the senior command of the Radwan forces — about 20 commanders — were killed in the strike.

    IDF spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said in a press conference that Aqil and the Radwan unit commanders were killed as they held a meeting.

Driving the news: The attack comes several days after the remote detonations of pagers and Walkie-Talkies that killed close to 40 people and wounded more than 3,000 others. Hezbollah said many members of its military units and institutions died or were injured in the attacks.

    A senior Israeli official said Israel did not inform the U.S. in advance of the attack in Beirut on Friday, but briefed senior U.S.
officials on the matter immediately after it was carried out.

    White House spokesperson John Kirby said he was not aware of any prior notice Israel gave the U.S. about the Beirut strike.

    Kirby said the U.S. still believes a diplomatic solution for the fighting on the Israel-Lebanon border is possible. He stressed that a war between Israel and Lebanon isn't inevitable "and we are trying to prevent it."

The latest: President Biden said at the top of the cabinet meeting on Friday that the administration is working on a solution that would allow civilians in northern Israel and southern Lebanon to go back to their homes.

    "We have to get this done, but we still have a way to go," Biden said.

Zoom in: Aqil is one of the founders of Hezbollah's military wing.

    He is wanted by the U.S. for his involvement in the bombings of the U.S. Embassy in Beirut in April 1983, which killed 63 people, and the U.S. Marine Corps barracks in October 1983, which killed 241 U.S. personnel.

What they're saying: An Israeli official described the assassination as "a huge blow" for Hezbollah's military command and control structure.

    Another Israeli official said that after Fuad Shukr was killed by Israel Defense Forces in July, Aqil replaced him as Hezbollah's top military commander.

    The Israeli official said Israel reached the conclusion that it wouldn't be able to reach a diplomatic solution to the situation on the northern border without going through a military escalation.

    "This is why we have been gradually taking our gloves off and increasing our attacks against Hezbollah," the official said.

Israel says it killed top Hezbollah military commander in Beirut strike (Axios)

From the AP wire:

The Israeli strike in the southern suburbs of Lebanon’s capital killed at least nine people and wounded nearly 60 others, according to Lebanese health officials, and flattened two apartment buildings. The Israeli military also claimed that its strike killed other “top operatives” of Hezbollah’s elite Radwan Force, without elaborating.

A Hezbollah official has confirmed that Akil was supposed to be in the building in the Dahiya district that was hit.

Local networks broadcast footage that showed a high-rise building completely flattened in Jamous area, just kilometers from downtown Beirut where Hezbollah holds sway. First responders scrambled through the tangled streets and combed through the rubble of at least two collapsed apartment buildings to search for more missing people. Health authorities said at least eight of the 59 wounded were in critical condition.

An Israeli official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss behind-the-scenes security matters, said the strike targeted Ibrahim Akil, the head of Hezbollah’s elite Radwan Force. An official close to Hezbollah also speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed that Akil was supposed to be in the building when it was hit.

It was not immediately clear whether Akil, who also served on Hezbollah’s Jihad Council, the group’s highest military body, was killed.

So, all the senior Hezbollah commanders were meeting in the same room? Because they can no longer communicate by beeper or walkie talkie so they were forced to meet in person.?

Did Israel just pull off a check mate:

Step 1: Destroy the beepers, walkie-talkies, other electronic devices; create confusion & chaos.

Step 2: When they're forced to meet in person, blow up the building.

1983 - The United States embassy in Beirut is hit by a car bomb. The death toll included 32 Lebanese, 17 Americans, and 14 visitors. Carried out by Hezbollah.

1983 - Two truck bombs were detonated at buildings in Beirut, Lebanon, housing American and French service members. The attack killed 307 people: 241 U.S. and 58 French military personnel, six civilians, and two attackers. Also carried out by Hezbollah.

Flashback: Mike Jacobs reporting from Beirut after the 1983 barracks bombing:




2024 - Ibrahim Aqil, one of the men responsible for the 1983 bombings, is eliminated in an Israeli air strike.

I guess now confirmed...



Welp, the weekend is here and I'm sure this is going to escalate. Stay frosty.