An explosion ended the life of Saleh al Aruri, Hamas' number two, in a neighborhood on the outskirts of Beirut on Tuesday afternoon. The Islamist organization accuses Israel of the attack in the Lebanese capital, but Benjamin Netanyahu's government has not yet acknowledged its responsibility. If confirmed, it would be Israel's biggest success since the Gaza war began on October 7, as the Islamist organization's most senior fighter would be eliminated. It would also be the first Israeli attack on the Lebanese capital since 2006. According to Portal, a missile fired from a drone was the cause of his death and that of two other leaders of the group's armed wing.
Al Aruri, co-founder of Hamas's armed wing, the Ezedin al-Qassam Brigades, was the key associate of the organization's leader, Ismail Haniye. His death came amid talks between the two sides over a possible ceasefire and the exchange of hostages kidnapped by Hamas and Palestinians held in Israeli prisons. After learning of his disappearance, Haniye reiterated that his terms for a new exchange necessarily require Israel to “impose a complete halt” to its military offensive in Gaza.
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It has been almost three months since the attacks that killed 1,200 Israelis and the start of the Israeli military response that left more than 21,000 dead in the Gaza Strip. The elimination of Al Aruri represents a success for Netanyahu's government, which has been in power since October 7 and had failed to capture or kill a senior Hamas leader despite the siege of that area by land, sea and air eliminate. Al Aruri's position in the organization surpasses what is considered a top target in Israel: the Gaza Strip leader, Yahia Sinwar, and his lieutenant and local military wing leader, Mohamed Deif.
Al Aruri, a native of a town near Ramallah, was also in charge of the West Bank militia. His murder sparked protests in the center of the Palestinian capital. Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati condemned the explosion as a “new Israeli crime” that he said was aimed at drawing his country into war. Hamas has confirmed his death, which it sees as a “cowardly murder.” For its part, Iran has assured that the attack will “ignite the veins of resistance and motivation to fight against the Zionist occupiers not only in Palestine but in the region.” The Tehran regime supports the Hezbollah militias (Lebanon), related groups in Syria and Iraq, and the Houthi rebels in Yemen, which have increased hostilities against Israel since the beginning of their offensive in Gaza.
The attack occurred at Hamas offices in Dahiye, a Beirut suburb controlled by Hezbollah, the Shiite militia that exchanges rockets, aerial fire and artillery with Israel almost daily in the north of the country. Portal reports that in addition to the death of Al Aruri, the attack also resulted in the deaths of five other people. The Israeli military refused to confirm responsibility for the attack. Mark Regev, adviser to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, assured the American broadcaster MSNBC that Israel was not responsible for the bombing. “Whoever it was, it must be clear: this was not an attack against Lebanon,” he said. “Whoever did it carried out a surgical strike against the Hamas leadership,” he added.
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