Hezbollah confirms loss of life of one in all its prime commanders in Israel strike

BEIRUT — Hezbollah on Tuesday confirmed the death of one of its top commanders, Ibrahim Kobeisi, who was killed in an Israeli strike in a southern Beirut suburb.

The strike hit three floors of a six-story building. It was Israel’s third strike over Beirut in less than a week

Kobeissi is the first member of the militant group pronounced dead since Israel and Hezbollah entered a more intense phase of the ongoing conflict.

Israel said Kobeisi was a top Hezbollah commander with the group’s rocket and missile unit. Israeli military officials said Kobeisi was responsible for launches towards Israel and planned a 2000 attack in which three Israeli soldiers were kidnapped and killed.

It was the latest in a string of assassinations and setbacks for Hezbollah, the strongest political and military actor in Lebanon and widely considered the top paramilitary force in the Arab world.-war