Israel says it has killed a top Hezbollah commander after carrying out an air strike on a southern suburb of the Lebanese capital, Beirut.<\/p>\n The Israeli military says Fuad Shukr was the target of an “intelligence-based elimination”. <\/p>\n Hezbollah has not yet confirmed his death, but says Shukhr was in a building at the time.<\/p>\n Israeli officials say he was responsible for a rocket attack on the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights on Saturday which killed 12 people, mostly children<\/a>. Hezbollah has denied any involvement in that attack.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n In a statement on Wednesday, Hezbollah said the rubble was still being removed from the site of the building in Daniyeh – a stronghold of the armed group which was “still waiting for the result”. <\/p>\n It said a number of people had been killed in the attack.<\/p>\n Lebanon’s Prime Minister Najib Mikati condemned “blatant Israeli aggression”.<\/p>\n He described it as a “criminal act” in a “series of aggressive operations killing civilians in clear and explicit violation of international law.”<\/p>\n In a brief post on social media after the attack, Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said: “Hezbollah crossed the red line”.<\/p>\n An Israeli official has confirmed to CBS News, the BBC’s US partner, that Israel gave the US notice of its Beirut strike.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Fuad Shukr is believed to be a senior adviser to Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, the US has previously said.<\/p>\n It has been offering a $5m (3.9m) reward for information about him, alleging he also played a “central role” in the 1983 bombing of a US Marines barracks in Beirut, which killed 241 US military personnel.<\/p>\n Haret Hreik, the area of Dahiyeh hit by the air strike, is densely populated and strongly fortified. Dahiyeh itself is surrounded by Hezbollah checkpoints.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Speaking after the Israeli strike, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters that US President Joe Biden believed a wider war between Israel and Hezbollah could be avoided.<\/p>\n “We do not want to see an escalation, we do not want to see an all-out war,” she said.<\/p>\n Earlier in the day, two unnamed Israeli officials told Reuters news agency that while Israel sought to hurt Hezbollah, it did not want to drag Lebanon into all-out war.<\/p>\n The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) later said there would be no new instructions for Israelis on taking shelter, suggesting they did not anticipate an immediate or significant Hezbollah reaction. <\/p>\n Both sides are aware of the cost of all-out war, which could bring in Iran in support of its Lebanese proxy.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n![\"AFP](\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/480\/cpsprodpb\/dde4\/live\/f897c990-4ebc-11ef-9b3a-e7ee8fa7ddb1.jpg.webp\")
AFP<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n