Israeli strike kills senior Hamas commander Samer Mahmoud al-Haj in south Lebanon

An Israeli airstrike on a car deep inside Lebanon killed a senior Hamas commander on Friday evening, the IDF, Hamas, and security sources reported.

The strike, on the southern edges of the Lebanese port city of Sidon, some 60 kilometers (nearly 40 miles) from the frontier, killed Samer Mahmoud al-Haj, a Hamas security official who works in the nearby refugee camp for Palestinians, Ain al-Hilweh. His bodyguard was critically wounded, the three sources said.

Al-Haj was responsible for directing attacks against Israel, the IDF and Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) reported in a joint statement. He was also reportedly the commander of Hamas forces in Ain al-Hilweh and was responsible for recruiting and training more terrorists there.

Eliminating terrorists in Lebanon

The IDF has been carrying out strikes against members of Hamas, allied Lebanese armed group Hezbollah, and other factions in Lebanon over the last 10 months, in parallel with the Gaza war.

Those armed groups have launched rockets, drones, and artillery attacks across the border into northern Israel.

While most of the hostilities have been limited to the strip of border between Israel and Lebanon, Israeli strikes targeting senior figures in Hezbollah, Hamas, and other groups have taken place further north.

An Israeli strike on the outskirts of Beirut in January killed Hamas's deputy chief, Saleh Arouri. Another Israeli strike in the same area last week killed Hezbollah's top military commander, Fuad Shukr.

Hours after Shukr was killed, Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in Tehran. Iran and its allies in the region, including Hezbollah and Hamas, have blamed Israel and vowed retaliation.