An official with the al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Palestinian Hamas resistance movement, has been killed along with members of his family in an Israeli drone strike on a camp for Palestinian refugees in northern Lebanon.
Local Lebanese and Palestinian media outlets reported that the strike targeted an apartment building in the Beddawi refugee camp near Lebanon’s Tripoli city, more than 80km (50 miles) north of the capital Beirut, on Saturday morning.
Hamas later confirmed that Saeed Atallah Ali was killed in the attack, together with his wife and two young daughters.
“We pledge to our people to avenge the pure blood that was shed and to confirm that our upcoming series of responses will be in actions before words,” the Gaza-based group said in a statement.
According to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), the Beddawi camp was established in 1955. It has five UNRWA-run schools catering to more than 3,700 students among the camp’s estimated 18,000 inhabitants.
Hezbollah launches rocket attacks against Israeli military positions
The Lebanese Hezbollah resistance movement announced that it carried out rocket attacks against Israeli forces and their military positions in recent hours.
The group said its fighters fired salvos of rockets at Israeli Elyakim and Neve Ziv military outposts in the northern part of the occupied territories.
A gathering of Israeli forces was also struck with a barrage of rockets in the border village of Khallet Ubair in Yaroun.
Rockets were fired at Israeli forces in the illegal settlements of Kafr Jaladi and Kafrioufel.
Additionally, Hezbollah said its fighters clashed with Israeli forces when they attempted to advance towards the town of Odaisseh in southern Lebanon late on Friday.
The Lebanese resistance group said it carried out a “huge explosion” on the Israeli troops, forcing them to retreat and inflicting casualties and injuries.