Israeli Strikes Kill 20 in Lebanon; Hezbollah Retaliates with Drone Swarms

The latest fatalities have pushed the total death toll from Israeli strikes since March 2 to 1,021, as per figures released by the National News Agency. The number of injured has climbed to 2,641, while over 134,600 people have been displaced and are currently sheltering in relief centres, as per Al Jazeera.

Meanwhile, Hezbollah claimed responsibility for a series of retaliatory attacks targeting Israeli positions. The group said it carried out a drone strike on Israeli troops in the north, using what it described as a "swarm" of unmanned aerial vehicles near the town of Maroun al-Ras, Al Jazeera reported.

According to Al Jazeera, Hezbollah also reported launching missiles toward Nahariya, stating that the strike was in line with an earlier evacuation warning issued by the group.

In a separate development, an Israeli airstrike hit Kfar Tebnit in the Nabatieh district of southern Lebanon. There were no immediate reports of casualties from that incident, Al Jazeera reported.

Meanwhile, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on Friday claimed it had eliminated several senior Iranian officials in a targeted strike in Tehran, including key figures linked to intelligence, propaganda, and security operations.

In a post shared on X, the Israel Defense Forces said, "ELIMINATED: Esmail Ahmadi, Head of the Intelligence Division of the Basij Force, as well as several other senior commanders in a strike on the senior leadership of the Basij Force in the heart of Tehran."

The IDF wrote that Ahmadi played a central role in advancing and executing attacks carried out by the Basij Forces.

"He was also responsible for enforcing public order and the regime's values on behalf of the IRGC and leading major suppression operations during the recent internal protests in Iran," the post added.

In a separate post, the Israeli military further claimed the killing of Ali Mohammad Naini, identified as the spokesperson and head of the public relations arm of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

"ELIMINATED: Ali Mohammad Naini, the Spokesperson and Head of the Public Relations Array of the IRGC. Naini served in several propaganda and public relations roles. In his role as the IRGC's main propagandist for the past 2 years, he disseminated the regime's terrorist propaganda to its proxies across the Middle East in order to influence and advance terror attacks against Israel," the IDF said.

The IDF in another post stated that Mehdi Rastami Sh'mastan, described as a key commander in Iran's Ministry of Intelligence, was also killed in the strike.

"Sh'mastan was a key figure in promoting terrorist activities and attacks against Israeli and Jewish civilians around the world. The Ministry of Intelligence is the Iranian terror regime's primary intelligence organization and serves as one of the regime's central mechanisms of oppression and terror," the post further read.

Meanwhile, the Israeli military has urged residents across a large part of southern Lebanon to evacuate as its operations against Hezbollah intensify and casualties continue to rise, CNN reported.

The IDF has directed people living south of the Zahrani River to leave their homes. The river lies around 25 kilometres north of the Israel-Lebanon border, according to CNN.

As per CNN, the IDF said its forces were operating "with great force in the area" and reiterated its warning to civilians. "We reiterate our call for you to evacuate your homes immediately and head north of the Zahrani river," the post read.

- ANI