Israel strikes Hezbollah command centers, killing over 50

Israel's military said on Tuesday that it launched extensive airstrikes targeting underground Hezbollah command centers in southern Lebanon Monday afternoon, in which more than 50 militants were killed, reported Xinhua.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesman Daniel Hagari said during a televised press briefing that the airstrikes hit and destroyed dozens of underground command centers of Hezbollah's Southern Front, where the commanders leading the fight against Israel were located.

According to Hagari, six senior commanders from Hezbollah's Southern Front and the Radwan Forces were killed, including Ali Ahmad Ismail, identified as the artillery commander in the Bint Jbeil area, and Ahmad Hassan Nazal, identified as head of the attack sector in Bint Jbeil for the Radwan Forces, Hezbollah's elite commando unit.

He noted that the Southern Front constructed an "extensive" network of underground infrastructure and command centers in southern Lebanon, designed to attack IDF soldiers during ground combats and execute attacks on communities in northern Israel.

The IDF spokesman added that the airstrikes targeted the entire area where Hezbollah's Southern Front operates along with the Radwan Forces.

In total, the IDF struck over 125 sites in southern Lebanon during the past 24 hours.

According to Israeli official figures, Hezbollah launched more than 170 rockets across the border on Tuesday.

The total number of fatalities in Lebanon since the onset of Israeli attacks has exceeded 2,100, with over 10,000 individuals injured, according to Lebanese authorities.

Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday that Israel has killed "thousands" of Hezbollah members, including Hashem Safieddine, the expected successor to the group's slain leader Hassan Nasrallah.

The statement was made in a video message to the people of Lebanon, released by Netanyahu's office, in which he urged them to "liberate" Lebanon from Hezbollah, accusing the group of causing the country's ongoing financial crisis.

"We've degraded Hezbollah's capabilities. We took out thousands of terrorists, including Nasrallah himself, his successor, and his successor's successor," Netanyahu said.

"Today, Hezbollah is weaker than it has been in many years," he added.

Netanyahu emphasized that Israel remains determined to continue its fight against Hezbollah.