Hizbullah has raised its alert level in southern Lebanon to the maximum, following the organization leader Hassan Nasrallah’s threats to retaliate against Israel for the assassination of Imad Mugniyah, Lebanese paper as-Safir reported Saturday.

Hizbullah claims that Mugniyah, the group’s top military commander who died in a blast in Damascus Tuesday, has been killed by Israeli agents.

According to as-Safir, Hizbullah has ordered 50,000 of its fighters to be on high alert, and has also evacuated most structures used by the group for non-military purposes in south Lebanon, in order to prepare “to curb any Israeli aggression.”

The paper also reported that the US embassy in Lebanon has ordered its personnel to exercise caution and refrain from using mobile phones. American nationals in the country have also been asked to remain vigilant and maintain constant contact with the embassy.

Arrests made in Mugniyah killing

Syrian security forces have arrested several suspects in the assassination of senior Hizbullah commander Imad Mugniyah in Damascus on Tuesday night, a Lebanese security source reported Friday.

According to the report, the suspects arrested were mostly Palestinians residing in Syria. The source did not say how many people were detained.

The Lebanese newspaper al-Akhbar, affiliated with the Hizbullah organization, reported Friday that the investigation conducted by Syrian security services into the assassination of the arch-terrorist was in advanced stages.

According to the report, investigators on behalf of Hizbullah and Iran were taking part in the Syrian investigation.