The Israeli army has announced the successful elimination of another high-profile commander of the Lebanese Hezbollah group. On Monday, November 4, it was reported that Israeli forces “struck and eliminated” Abdullah Ali Rida, the local commander of “c” in the Bara’akhit region of southern Lebanon, according to information provided by The Guardian.
The incident was part of an intensive campaign by the Israeli military, which includes both air strikes and ground operations against Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed Shiite Islamic organisation. The Israeli military said that Rida was responsible for planning and executing rocket attacks on Israeli positions, as well as coordinating the actions of “terrorists” in the region.
Over the past few weeks, Israeli forces have killed several Hezbollah commanders and senior officials. The most famous case was the assassination of Hassan Nasrallah on 27 September during a massive strike on his headquarters in Beirut.
Since the escalation of the conflict, Hezbollah has significantly expanded its operations in Lebanon in response to the events in Gaza between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas, which also receives support from Tehran. After Hamas’ attack on Israel on 7 October, Israeli forces launched a large-scale air and ground operation in Gaza, while Hezbollah declared its solidarity with the Palestinians and intensified rocket attacks on Israel.
In response, Israel intensified its air strikes on the territory of Lebanon, and on 30 September launched a ground operation in the south of the country. Israel’s stated goal is to neutralise Hezbollah in the region, which will allow approximately 60,000 Israelis who became refugees as a result of rocket attacks to return home.
According to AFP estimates, since 23 September, Israeli operations have killed at least 1,940 people in Lebanon. At the same time, over the past year, Israel has also suffered losses: at least 72 people were killed in rocket attacks from Lebanon, including 38 soldiers killed in ground operations in southern Lebanon.
This tense situation in the region continues to raise serious security concerns, and further military action could have unpredictable consequences for civilians in both countries.
