IDF Eliminates Senior Hezbollah Officer in Fourth Straight Day of Strikes

Four Hezbollah terrorists, including a senior officer, were killed Saturday in an Israel Defense Forces airstrike in southern Lebanon, the IDF said Sunday.

The military confirmed that it “struck and eliminated the logistics support officer of Hezbollah’s ‘Radwan Force’ in southern Lebanon,” adding that he had been involved in transferring weapons and rebuilding the group’s terrorist network.

The airstrike targeted a vehicle near Kfar Reman, roughly seven miles from Israel’s border, marking the fourth straight day of Israeli operations aimed at disrupting Hezbollah’s rearmament in violation of the ceasefire agreement.

The Radwan Force is Hezbollah’s elite unit trained to infiltrate Israel, capture border areas, and kidnap Israelis as part of its “Conquer the Galilee” strategy.

The IDF said the terrorists’ activity “posed a direct threat to Israel’s security” and violated the Nov. 26, 2024, truce with Lebanon. “The IDF will continue to operate to remove any threat to the State of Israel,” it stated.

Defense Minister Yisrael Katz warned that “Hezbollah is playing with fire and the president of Lebanon is dragging his feet,” calling on Beirut to enforce the disarmament of Hezbollah. “Maximum enforcement will continue and even intensify—we will not allow a threat to the residents of the north,” he said.

The ceasefire, signed nearly a year ago, was meant to end a year of cross-border clashes triggered when Hezbollah joined Hamas’s war on Israel after the Oct. 7, 2023, massacre. Despite the deal, Hezbollah has continued attacks and rearmament efforts.

U.S. Special Envoy Tom Barrack said during a security forum in Bahrain that Hezbollah still possesses between 15,000 and 20,000 rockets and missiles. “Israel every day is bombing the south because you still have thousands of rockets and missiles that are threatening it,” he said.

Barrack added that Israel’s intelligence shows Hezbollah is rebuilding across the Bekaa Valley and that Jerusalem “cannot withdraw from the border areas it secured.” He said Washington is trying to push Hezbollah to stand down through diplomatic incentives and regional agreements.