BEIRUT: Israeli strikes on Thursday killed at least five people, including the commander of a Hamas-allied group in Lebanon, militant groups and a security source said.
Since Hamas's October 7 attack on Israel sparked war in Gaza, Israel has repeatedly targeted militants of Jamaa Islamiya, whose armed wing has launched attacks on Israel from southern Lebanon over the past nine months.
A Lebanese security source said that an Israeli strike on a house near the southern village of Jmaijmeh killed three people and wounded several more.
Hezbollah said two of its members were among the dead, including Ali Jaafar Maatouq. A source close to the Islamist group described him as a commander of its elite Al Radwan operational unit.
The Israeli army confirmed that its air force had "eliminated" Ali Jaafar Maatouq in a strike against "a command centre where Hezbollah terrorists were operating in the Jmaijmeh region".
Hezbollah earlier announced the death of another member in an Israeli raid in southern Lebanon. The Israeli army confirmed that it had killed him "in the Qana area", adding that he had been "involved in numerous attacks against Israel".
The army said it killed another Al Radwan commander in Majdal Selm, near Jmaijmeh, which was not immediately confirmed by Lebanese sources.
Jamaa Islamiya, a military group close to Hamas, said in a statement that its commander Mohamad Jbara had died in a "despicable Zionist raid" in Lebanon's eastern Bekaa Valley.
Hamas's armed wing also announced Jbara's death and said he was one of its commanders.
Lebanon's state-run National News Agency said Jbara was killed when an "enemy drone" targeted his vehicle in the village of Ghazze.
The Israeli military said it "eliminated" Jbara in a strike, who was "responsible for carrying out terror attacks and missile launches" against Israel.
Jamaa Islamiya, formed in the 1960s, has claimed responsibility for multiple attacks against Israel, including joint operations with Hamas in Lebanon.
The cross-border violence since October has killed 516 people in Lebanon, according to an AFP tally. Most of the dead have been fighters, but they have also included at least 104 civilians.
On the Israeli side, 18 soldiers and 13 civilians have been killed, according to authorities.
The violence has raised fears of all-out conflict between the two foes, who last went to war in the summer of 2006.
