Saleh al-Arouri – the deputy chief of Hamas, a stronghold of the allied Lebanese group Hezbollah – was martyred in a drone strike on Beirut’s southern suburbs of Dahiyeh by Israel.
According to the media reports, since Hamas’ deadly attack on Israeli territory on October 7, this is the first known targeted assassination of a Hamas official outside of the Palestinian Territories.
The adviser to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Mark Regev said that Israel had not taken responsibility for this attack, but whoever did it, it must be clear that this was not an attack on the Lebanese state. Whoever did this did a surgical strike against the Hamas leadership, he added.
The reports further stated that Saleh al-Arouri was deputy head of Hamas’s politburo and a founder of its military wing, the Qassam Brigades. He had recently traveled to Lebanon and Qatar, which facilitated negotiations between Israel and Hamas on the hostages that Hamas had taken during its attack on October 7. The United States, which considers Hamas to be a terrorist organization, made a $5 million offer for Arouri’s information last year.
In addition to confirming Arouri’s death, Hamas claimed the deaths of Azzam Al-Aqraa Abu Ammar and Samir Findi Abu Amer, two officers with the Qassam Brigade. Ismail Haniyeh, the leader of Hamas, declared on Tuesday that Arouri’s murder was a terrorist attack, an infringement on Lebanon’s sovereignty, and a continuation of Israel’s animosity toward the Palestinian people.
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