Maytham Mustafa al-Attar. (Hezbollah Military Media)
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) announced on July 6 that it had assassinated an air defense specialist of Hezbollah in Lebanon.
The specialist, Maytham Mustafa al-Attar, was “a significant source of knowledge” in Hezbollah’s air defense unit, and was involved in planning and carrying out attacks against Israel, the IDF said in a statement, adding that al-Attar obtained his knowledge during visits to Iran, and was involved in aiding the Lebanese terror group to procure Iranian weapons.
Al-Attar was struck while driving his car near the town of Shaat in the northeastern Lebanese district of Baalbek, around 100 kilometers away from the Israeli border.
The IDF described the assassination of al-Attar in its statement as “a blow to the capabilities of Hezbollah’s air defense unit.”
Hezbollah mourned al-Attar in an official statement. However, it didn’t describe him as a specialist or a commander, which casts some doubts on the IDF’s claims.
Following the assassination, the IDF announced more strikes against targets of Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, including two observation posts in the towns of Houla and Odaisseh. Lebanese media didn’t report any casualties however.
Hezbollah will likely respond to the killing of al-Attar in the upcoming few hours or days. This could lead to further escalation on the Lebanese-Israeli border.
The clashes on the Lebanese-Israeli border first broke out after the start of the war in Gaza last October, with Hezbollah and its allies carrying out attacks in support of the Strip.
So far, the border clashes have resulted in ten civilian deaths on the Israeli side, as well as the deaths of at least 16 IDF soldiers and reservists. On the Lebanese side, more than 500 people have been killed, including 344 fighters of Hezbollah and at least 90 civilians.
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