22 killed in deadliest strike in central Beirut since start of war

The Hezbollah-aligned Lebanese news network Al-Mayadeen reported that a top Hezbollah source said the strike was a failed “assassination attempt” against Wafiq Safa, who Hezbollah said is the head of the party’s liaison and coordination unit tasked with coordinating with Lebanese officials. The Israel Defense Forces did not immediately comment on the strike.

Safa was sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury in 2019. The Office of Foreign Assets Control described him as “the head of Hizballah’s security apparatus” who directly reported to then Hezbollah chief Hasan Nasrallah, who was killed in an Israeli strike on Sept. 27. In its designation, OFAC noted that Safa had “exploited Lebanon’s ports and border crossings to smuggle contraband and facilitate travel on behalf of Hizballah.”

More recently Safa’s role has taken on an international dimension. In March of this year, he made a trip to the United Arab Emirates to secure the release of detainees linked to the group.

Many of Israel’s strikes in Lebanon have been concentrated around Beirut’s southern suburbs, where Hezbollah has maintained a significant presence.

Thursday’s strike came as the Israel Defense Forces and Hezbollah continued trading fire, with the IDF saying Hezbollah fired around 190 projectiles from Lebanon into Israel that day. The IDF said it was continuing its operations in Lebanon with ground raids, “various close-quarters encounters and aerial strikes.”

Also Thursday, Israel’s security cabinet met to vote on the country’s response to Iran’s Oct. 1 missile attack, said an Israeli official who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly.

The IDF revealed Thursday that senior Israeli leaders, including IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi and Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar, had entered southern Lebanon. They held a joint situation assessment with fighting forces and commanders there, the military said on X.

IDF spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari also posted footage of himself walking through a home in a Lebanese border village. “Every house is a terror base,” Hagari said, describing the “storage of gear” with vests, helmets, night vision, sniper rifles and mines that he said were for Hezbollah fighters.

The strikes also came after the United Nations announced Thursday that Israeli forces fired at three U.N. positions in the south of Lebanon in the past 24 hours, escalating a nearly week-long standoff between international peacekeepers from U.N. Interim Force in Lebanon (UNFIL) and advancing Israeli ground troops. Two peacekeepers were injured after an Israeli tank fired toward an observation tower, UNFIL said.