Israel Intends To Strike Hezbollah’s Financial Arm & Launches Strikes In Beirut

IDF declared Sunday that it is now targeting the Lebanon-based Hezbollah’s financial arm and will attack a number of locations in Beirut and elsewhere. Explosions erupted in Beirut’s southern suburbs roughly an hour later.

According to a senior Israeli intelligence official, al-Qard al-Hassan, a Hezbollah entity that is used to pay operatives of the Iran-backed militant group and help buy arms, will be the target of the strikes throughout Lebanon. The person spoke on condition of anonymity in accordance with army norms.

Ordinary Lebanese people also use the registered charity, which is approved by Saudi Arabia and the United States and offers financial services. Its Arabic moniker translates to “the benevolent loan,” and Hezbollah has used it to solidify its popularity among Shiites in a nation where government and banking institutions have faltered recently.

In a statement, Al-Qard al-Hassan said that the choice to target it was an indication of Israel’s insolvency and reassured clients that security precautions had been taken. People began to pour out of the neighborhoods around its branches in Beirut.

The Israeli military mislabeled one target in an evacuation alert for the Choueifat neighborhood south of Beirut, which led to confusion and fear. Grand Cinema ABC Verdun, a theater in a posh retail center in central Beirut situated over 10 kilometers away, was identified as the location.

Last month, an all-out battle broke out between Israel and Hezbollah over the Gaza battle, followed by a year of increased tensions and regular cross-border gunfire. Earlier this month, Israel dispatched ground forces to Lebanon.

Israel made its declaration the day after U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin asked Israel to reduce some operations, particularly in and around Beirut, citing civilian losses in the Israel-Hezbollah conflict as being far too high.

The United Nations peacekeeping force is positioned in the center. According to UNIFIL, Israeli soldiers purposefully destroyed an observation tower and the perimeter fence of a UN position in southern Lebanon on Sunday. Once more, it refused Israeli demands to vacate the place.