As RedState’s Bob Hoge reported earlier Friday, Israeli airstrikes in Beirut and Lebanon have taken out several senior Hezbollah leaders, including Ibrahim Aqeel, in yet another blow this week to the terrorist outfit. Aqeel was one of the masterminds behind the bombing of the U.S. Marine barracks in Beirut back in 1983, and his demise comes on the 40th anniversary of one of his other attacks on the U.S. — the 1984 bombing that took place outside of the American embassy in Beirut. The Israel War Room X account noted the significance of the moment, tweeting:
40 years ago to the day, Ibrahim Aqil helped direct a Hezbollah suicide bombing that targeted the American embassy in Beirut.
Today, Israel eliminated him with a surgical airstrike in Beirut.
Justice is served.
Israel is clearly willing to play the long game when it comes to meting out justice.
Reports have since emerged that Hezbollah was planning an “October 7-like” attack on Israel codenamed “Conquer the Galilee.” October 7, 2023, was, of course, the day that Hamas terrorists from Gaza conducted a merciless assault on Israel, resulting in the barbarous murders of thousands of Israelis and the kidnappings of hundreds more — many of whom are still being held hostage nearly a year later.
Following the latest action by Israel, the IDF revealed what they believe Hezbollah was planning:
‘Hezbollah intended to infiltrate Israeli communities and kidnap and murder innocent civilians in a similar manner to the October 7 Massacre,’ the IDF said.
‘The IDF will continue to remove the threat of Hezbollah’s capabilities and will continue to operate in all arenas to protect Israeli civilians.’
Ironically, Hezbollah was launching its own attack on Israel just as the Israeli air force was raining fire down on Hezbollah sites in Beirut. The IDF said of the Beirut attack:
“With the direction of IDF intelligence, the IAF struck approximately 30 Hezbollah launchers and terrorist infrastructure sites, containing approximately 150 launcher barrels that were ready to fire projectiles toward Israeli territory. Additionally, the IDF struck Hezbollah terrorist infrastructure and a weapons storage facility in multiple areas in southern Lebanon.”
Israel is not playing around. The horrific stench of October 7 lingers on for them, and Israel has both the desire and the means to exact revenge and to take all actions necessary to protect its population from another assault. That’s been made abundantly clear from this week’s explosive activities.
The week is certainly ending on a bad note for Hezbollah, which earlier this week saw a reported over 30 of its terrorists killed and thousands more injured when explosives planted in their pagers were detonated. Hezbollah has vowed to keep up with its daily strikes on Israel despite this week’s events. Hassan Nasrallah, the secretary-general, was defiant in the face of Israel’s successes this week:
‘Yes, we were subjected to a huge and severe blow,’ he said. ‘The enemy crossed all boundaries and red lines.’
Meanwhile, the Iranian embassy in Beirut called Friday’s air strike an “Israeli madness that crossed all lines.”
