Hezbollah Commander Worth $7.5 Million Dead: Israeli Airstrike Takes Out High-Value Target

Hezbollah’s top commander under cover
He ordered the bombing of the US Embassy in 1983
The US designates ‘special terrorists’ to be tracked down
White House backs Israel for “justice”

‘Want to Save’ Leaflet Ibrahim Aqil wanted sheet released by the US State Department last year. Photo source: US State Department Starting with the serial bombing of thousands of pagers and portable radio sets, Israel is increasing its offensive against Hezbollah, a pro-Iranian armed group in Lebanon. After carrying out a large-scale air strike in southern Lebanon on the 19th, on the 20th, they killed Ibrahim Aqil, who is considered one of Hezbollah’s top military commanders, in a targeted air strike. In addition, air strikes against Hezbollah continue.

According to the Times of Israel, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said on the 22nd, “(Attacks against Hezbollah) will continue until the residents of the north (border area with Lebanon) return home safely.”

Hezbollah is also increasing the level of its counterattack. According to Al Jazeera and the Guardian, Hezbollah fired at least 115 rockets at Israel on the 22nd. Some of these fell on Haifa, Israel’s northern stronghold and third largest city.

As fighting between the two sides intensifies, concerns are growing that it could escalate into an all-out war. There is also analysis that Israel and Hezbollah have exchanged fire on the largest scale since the ‘Gaza War’ began in October last year. Some predict that both Hezbollah and Israel may deploy ground troops across the border and engage in a ground war.

● Hezbollah’s top commander, Aqil, was killed

According to the AFP news agency, on the 20th, residential buildings in the Dahiyeh area on the southern outskirts of Beirut, known as Hezbollah’s stronghold, were subjected to targeted air attacks by the Israeli army. At least 37 Hezbollah operatives and civilians are said to have been killed as a result. In particular, Aqil, the commander of the elite special operations unit ‘Radwan’, and Ahmad Wahbi, the unit’s second in command, lost their lives in this airstrike.

Aqil, who is estimated to be in his 60s, is a figure that is kept secret even within Hezbollah to the extent that he is called by the pseudonym ‘Haj Abdul Qader’. However, he is an important figure, second only to Hezbollah’s top commander, Fuad Shukr, who was killed by the Israeli army in July. According to Israel, Aqil, who has been involved with Hezbollah since its creation in 1982, has been in charge of Hezbollah operations since 2004 and has been in charge of the anti-tank missile unit.

In particular, Agil is also known as the mastermind behind the 1983 bombings of the US Embassy and Marine Corps barracks, which killed around 300 people. Accordingly, the United States designated him a ‘special terrorist’ in 2019. Last year, a reward of up to 7 million dollars (about 9.35 billion won) was offered for information related to this alone.

The Israeli military claims to have removed all but three key commanders from Hezbollah’s chain of command, including Supreme Leader Hassan Nasrallah. The British Financial Times (FT) also assessed, “(Aqil’s death) is the biggest blow that Hezbollah has received since its formation.”

Major General Daniel Hagari, Israel’s chief military spokesman, reaffirmed the killing in a press conference on the 20th, saying, “Aqil is the person responsible for the deaths of countless civilians and innocent people.” US White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan also expressed support, saying, “It’s a good result that justice is being served for the terrorists who killed Americans.”

● “Hezbollah could risk life and death in an all-out war.”

On the 22nd, Hezbollah fired at least 115 rockets towards Israel, some of which fell on the northern city of Haifa. The Israeli army described this as “an attack targeting a civilian area” and said, “We are hitting Hezbollah targets in Lebanon.” Pro-Iranian militants in Iraq also announced in a statement that they had launched drone attacks against Israel early in the morning.

The day before, both sides continued their offensive. On the 21st, the Israeli army launched airstrikes on 400 Hezbollah military targets in southern Lebanon. Hezbollah also announced that it had fired dozens of missiles at Israel’s Ramat David Air Base. Located 50km from the border, this air base is the most distant target Hezbollah has attacked since the start of the Gaza war.

The New York Times expressed concern that “Israel’s attempt to subdue Hezbollah could force Hezbollah to risk its life and death and enter a ground war.” Lina Khatib, a senior researcher at Chatham House in the UK, analyzed in the NYT, “18 years of joint restraint (since the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war) is now ushering in a new era of Israeli dominance.”

Correspondent Kim Bora purple@donga.com