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Son of Hezbollah parliament leader killed in Israeli strike: reports

The death could mark a major escalation in the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon amid the Gaza war.
Smoke billows following an Israeli strike on the southern Lebanese town of Kfar Kila near the border with Israel on November 22, 2023, amid increasing cross-border tensions as fighting continues with Hamas militants in the southern Gaza Strip. (Photo by AFP) (Photo by -/AFP via Getty Images)

The son of Hezbollah’s parliamentary leader in the Lebanese legislative body was killed in an Israeli airstrike early Thursday morning local time.

Lebanese news outlet LBCI reported that Abbas Raad, the son of Mohammad Raad, was killed in an Israeli strike in Beit Yahoun in southern Lebanon. Agence France Press confirmed the news. Several other Hezbollah members were killed, a source close to the family told Agence France-Presse.

The Israel Defense Forces said in a post on X Wednesday evening that its jets struck Hezbollah infrastructure in Lebanon. An IDF spokesperson did not immediately respond to Al-Monitor’s request for more details.

Lebanese Minister of Culture Mohammad Mortada said in a post on X that Abbas Raad “rises as a martyr” along with four of his “resistance comrades.”

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