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Israeli Strike Kills Senior Hamas Figure in South Lebanon

Civil defense members hose down a car after an Israeli airstrike targeted a car on the edge of Lebanon's port city of Sidon, two security sources told Reuters, Lebanon August 9, 2024. (Reuters)
Civil defense members hose down a car after an Israeli airstrike targeted a car on the edge of Lebanon's port city of Sidon, two security sources told Reuters, Lebanon August 9, 2024. (Reuters)
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Israeli Strike Kills Senior Hamas Figure in South Lebanon

Civil defense members hose down a car after an Israeli airstrike targeted a car on the edge of Lebanon's port city of Sidon, two security sources told Reuters, Lebanon August 9, 2024. (Reuters)
Civil defense members hose down a car after an Israeli airstrike targeted a car on the edge of Lebanon's port city of Sidon, two security sources told Reuters, Lebanon August 9, 2024. (Reuters)

An Israeli airstrike on a car deep inside Lebanon killed a senior figure from Palestinian armed group Hamas on Friday evening, a Hamas source and two other security sources told Reuters.

The strike, on the southern edges of the Lebanese port city of Sidon some 60 kilometers (nearly 40 miles) from the frontier, killed Samer al-Hajj, 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.

The Israeli military 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 on 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.

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Lebanon Would Struggle to Cover 'Fraction' of Aid Needs in War With Israel, Minister Says

A general view of Beirut, Lebanon August 6, 2024. REUTERS/Emilie Madi
A general view of Beirut, Lebanon August 6, 2024. REUTERS/Emilie Madi
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Lebanon Would Struggle to Cover 'Fraction' of Aid Needs in War With Israel, Minister Says

A general view of Beirut, Lebanon August 6, 2024. REUTERS/Emilie Madi
A general view of Beirut, Lebanon August 6, 2024. REUTERS/Emilie Madi

Lebanon would struggle to meet even a fraction of its aid needs if full-scale war with Israel erupts, a senior official said, as it seeks increased donor support amid persistent border clashes.
Nasser Yassin, the minister overseeing contingency planning for a wider conflict, told Reuters Lebanon would need $100 million monthly for food, shelter, healthcare and other needs in a worst-case scenario.
"A small fraction, even 10 to 15 percent of that, would be huge for the government. We will need donors to step up," Yassin said.
International aid is already falling short. Lebanon has received only a third of the $74 million sought over the course of the 10-month conflict between Iran-backed Hezbollah and Israel.
"Humanitarian funding in many places has been reduced to a minimal level of just keeping heads above water. Some organizations are even slashing funding for critical life-saving matters," Yassin added.
Lebanon's state, hollowed out by a five-year economic crisis left to fester by ruling elites, struggled to provide basic services even before the current conflict began alongside the Gaza war.
Nearly 100,000 Lebanese, mainly from the south, have been displaced, as well as more than 60,000 Israelis, according to official figures.
While Israel houses its displaced in government-funded accommodation, Lebanon relies on ill-equipped public schools or informal arrangements such as staying with family or friends.
An Aug. 7 government document seen by Reuters outlines two scenarios other than the conflict remaining at its current levels.
A "controlled conflict" displacing 250,000 people, requiring $50 million in monthly funding for three months.
An "uncontrolled conflict" displacing 1 million or more, needing $100 million monthly for three months.
The document emphasizes the urgent need for additional resources, noting current stocks and shelter capacity are "far from adequate".
"Additional resources are urgently needed to respond to ongoing needs and to prepare and respond to increasing needs in event of escalation," it says.
Yassin said Lebanon's food supply would last four to five months under an Israeli blockade similar to the 2006 war.
However, diesel supplies would last only about five weeks - a concern given the country's reliance on generators to power everything from hospitals and bakeries to the internet due to limited availability of state electricity.