According to sources cited by the Qatari newspaper al-Araby al-Jadeedd on Monday, Wissam Tawil, a high-ranking member of Hezbollah's elite Radwan force in southern Lebanon, was closely associated with former commander of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' Quds Force Qasem Soleimani.
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Soleimani was eliminated in an airstrike at Baghdad's international airport in early 2020. The recent assassination of Hamas deputy chief Saleh al-Arouri in Beirut, which has been attributed to Israel, has brought Tawil's significant connection to Soleimani into the spotlight once again.
According to the report, the elimination of both al-Arouri and Tawil could bring about a new stage in the Israel-Hezbollah front in the war in Gaza, which up until now has seen clashes in varying degrees of severity.
On its end, the Lebanese terror organization has clarified that as far as it's concerned, the response to Israel's alleged assassination of al-Arouri is still unfolding and that Israel should expect more attacks from southern Lebanon aimed at avenging him.
Hezbollah has clarified that Tawil is the brother of Fadi Hassan Tawil, who was active in the organization between 1982 and 1987 before being killed in clashes with the IDF in Lebanon.
After the terror organization fired a heavy rocket volley at northern Israel last week, Hezbollah announced the move was only the beginning. However, it also told the Qatari outlet it has no interest in launching an all-out war against Israel.
Hezbollah confirmed Tawil's death on Monday, and according to a Lebanese report, an Israeli UAV attacked the car Tawil was driving in near a village in southern Lebanon, just over 6 miles away from the Israeli border. The report added another individual was killed in the strike, likely to be a Hezbollah terrorist.
In an official statement, Hezbollah labeled Tawil a "commander," also known as "Hajj Jawad." The group announced he died as a "martyr on the path to Jerusalem," a designation Hezbollah uses for its fallen since the war began on October 7.
According to Arab reports, Tawil was a field commander. Saudi channel Al Hadath reported that he led Hezbollah's 800th Infantry Unit in Syria and recently the Radwan force's 122nd Unit. Israel has not acknowledged the strike.
Syrian opposition sources claim Tawil fought in rural Aleppo and Eastern Syria for years, frequently traveling between Lebanon and Syria.
Footage taking in Lebanon shortly following Tawil's elimination
Israel has not commented on Tawil's death and the military didn't take responsibility for his targeted elimination. According to reports, the few assassinations seen in southern Lebanon since the start of the war were aimed against Hamas commanders in the region, with Tawil being the highest-ranked military figure to have been eliminated north of Israel's borders.
Thus far, Hezbollah has lost 154 of its operatives fighting against Israel, and over 20 Palestinians affiliated with the terror organization. However, Hezbollah has failed to name them among its casualties since the war began.