Israeli strike on Beirut targets top Hezbollah commander Ali Karaki: Source

A source close to Hezbollah said an Israeli strike on Beirut’s southern suburbs on Monday targeted the group’s commander for south Lebanon, where the movement has clashed with Israel for nearly a year.

It was the third Israeli strike targeting Hezbollah’s top brass in the group’s southern Beirut bastion in recent weeks, after a strike on Friday killed Ibrahim Aqil, who headed the group’s elite Radwan Force, and a July attack killed senior commander Fuad Shukr.

“The target of the Israeli strike was Ali Karaki, the current commander of the southern front and the third-in-command after” Aqil and Shukr were killed, said the source requesting anonymity to discuss sensitive matters.

It was unclear whether Karaki had been killed, the source said.

Hezbollah’s al-Manar television channel was broadcasting live from near the scene of the strike, while an AFP correspondent said the area had been cordoned off.

Al-Manar said a missile exploded inside the underground shelter of a building, adding residents reported that they did not hear any loud explosion when the strike hit.