Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened Israel’s Security Cabinet on Wednesday afternoon following the targeted killing of Hezbollah’s No. 2 in Beirut and the killing, allegedly by the Jewish state, of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran.
The Security Cabinet, which is responsible for defense-related decisions and composed of senior ministers, gathered at 4 p.m. at the Kirya military headquarters in Tel Aviv.
A strike by the Israeli Air Force in Beirut on Tuesday night killed Fu’ad Shukr, a top Hezbollah commander responsible for Saturday’s rocket barrage that killed 12 children in the Israeli Golan Heights, as well as a 1983 bombing that killed 241 U.S. service personnel in Beirut.
Hours later, Hamas “political” leader Ismail Haniyeh died when a missile hit his Tehran guest house. An Iranian source told Lebanon’s Al-Mayadeen daily, which is close to Hezbollah, that the strike “was carried out using a missile launched from country to country, not from within Iran.” The Israeli government has yet to comment on the incident.
Visiting troops operating the IDF’s Arrow air- and missile-defense system on Wednesday, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant discussed “operational assessments for the future,” the Defense Ministry said.
“The operation tonight in Beirut was precise and professional. We do not seek war, but we are preparing for all possibilities,” Gallant told soldiers.
“You have an extremely important role in defending the citizens of the State of Israel and protecting our country against aerial threats,” the minister said, adding that the Arrow has been “essential” in protecting the Jewish state against threats posed by Iran and its regional proxies.