news

한어Русский языкEnglishFrançaisIndonesianSanskrit日本語DeutschPortuguêsΕλληνικάespañolItalianoSuomalainenLatina

【text/observer network yang rong】

according to reuters on september 20, lebanon's hezbollah confirmed in the early morning of the 21st local time that its senior commander ibrahim aqil was killed in the israeli army's attack on the southern suburbs of the lebanese capital beirut on the 20th.

according to the israeli military, aqil was the acting commander of hezbollah's elite radwan special forces, and said they killed him during a meeting with about 10 other senior commanders. reuters quoted lebanese sources as saying that aqil was a member of hezbollah's supreme military council.

earlier, the israeli defense forces issued a statement on the evening of the 20th, saying that it had carried out a "targeted attack" in the southern suburbs of beirut that day. according to lebanese media reports, the attack was carried out by an israeli f-35 fighter jet, which fired two missiles at an apartment in the southern suburbs of beirut. according to the lebanese ministry of health, the israeli attack has killed 14 people.

lebanese caretaker prime minister mikati said on the 20th that israel's attack showed that they "do not attach importance to any humanitarian, legal or moral considerations." iranian foreign ministry spokesman kanani issued a statement on the 20th, strongly condemning the israeli air strikes on the southern suburbs of beirut.

iran's statement stressed that israel's actions seriously violated international law and infringed upon lebanon's sovereignty and territorial integrity, and must be condemned in the strongest terms by the international community. the statement also said that israel's policies run counter to the general consensus of the international community, attempting to escalate tensions in the region and spread war and conflict, and that israel's policies are the greatest threat to international peace and security.

john kirby, strategic communications coordinator of the u.s. national security council, said on the 20th that the united states had not received prior notice of israel's attack on beirut and would ask the israeli military for an explanation.

jeanne-henness plasschaert, the united nations special coordinator for lebanon, said thursday's attack on a densely populated area in beirut's southern suburbs was "part of an extremely dangerous cycle of violence with devastating consequences. it must stop now."

the bbc noted that this was the first attack on beirut since hezbollah's senior military commander fuad shukur was assassinated by israel in july.

the escalation of the airstrikes has also heightened people's concerns about a full-scale war between israel and lebanon. on the 17th and 18th, two rounds of explosions of communication equipment killed 27 people in lebanon and injured nearly 3,000 people. although israel has neither admitted nor denied carrying out the bombings, the outside world generally believes that it was israel that did it. hezbollah leader nasrallah denounced israel's move as crossing the red line and tantamount to declaring war.

this article is an exclusive article of observer.com and may not be reproduced without authorization.