Israeli military says it killed top Hezbollah leader Nabil Kaouk in airstrike

A day after the death of Hezbollah’s chief Hassan Nasrallah, the Israeli military have claimed that they have killed another top Hezbollah leader, Nabil Kaouk, in its airstrikes on Beirut.
The Israeli military announced on X that it has killed senior leader Nabil Kaouk, a key figure within the Iran-backed militant group and a potential successor to Hassan Nasrallah.
Kaouk, the commander of Hezbollah’s Preventive Security Unit and a member of its Central Council, was targeted and eliminated by Israeli fighter jets under the precise direction of military intelligence, the post by the Israeli military said.
Hezbollah has not confirmed the development yet.
Israeli strikes have increasingly targeted Hezbollah’s strongholds in southern Beirut and the Bekaa valley, where Israel claimed the group stores thousands of rockets.
Including Nasrallah, Israel’s military has said it has killed eight of Hezbollah’s nine most senior military commanders this year, mostly in the past week. These commanders led units ranging from the rocket division to the elite Radwan force, news agency Reuters reported.
Lebanon announced a 5-day mourning in the country on Sunday, a days after Israeli airstrikes killed Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah. All shops, businesses and government offices will remain closed till Wednesday.
According to the latest development, Hashem Safieddine will replace Hassan Nasrallah as the chief of Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah. Safieddine is a cousin of Nasrallah, who served as the chief of the group for 32 years.
The assault by Israel on Hezbollah is part of a rapid intensification of Israeli strikes over the past week, which have claimed over 700 lives in Lebanon. Israel has pledged to cripple Hezbollah and end its 11 months of fire on Israeli territory, which Nasrallah described as a “support front” for his ally Hamas in Gaza.