Israel arrests a member of the Islamic Group and kills another from Hezbollah in southern Lebanon
A series of developments has unfolded in southern Lebanon, including Israel’s arrest of a member of the Islamic Group and the targeting of another individual affiliated with Hezbollah in recent hours.
The Islamic Group in Lebanon, an ally of the Palestinian Hamas movement, accused an Israeli force of infiltrating the border area and abducting one of its officials, in an operation acknowledged by the Israeli army, which said it resulted in the arrest of a “senior terrorist” who was transferred for interrogation.
The group and its armed wing were repeatedly targeted by Israeli strikes during the war between Hezbollah and Israel, which lasted for more than a year and ended in November 2024 with a ceasefire. However, this did not prevent Israel from continuing deadly strikes and incursions into Lebanese territory.
In a statement, the Islamic Group condemned “the infiltration of Israeli occupation forces under the cover of darkness and the abduction of the group’s official in the Hasbaya–Marjeyoun area, Atwi Atwi, from his home, and taking him to an unknown destination.”
The group called on “the Lebanese state to exert pressure on the parties sponsoring the ceasefire to work toward his release,” according to remarks reported by Agence France-Presse.
For its part, the Israeli army said in a statement that its forces had arrested, based on “intelligence indicators collected over recent weeks, a prominent terrorist operative within the Islamic Group organization,” noting that he was “transferred to Israel for interrogation.”
It accused the group of having “carried out terrorist attacks throughout the war against the State of Israel and its civilians in the north.”
During the early months of the confrontation between Hezbollah and Israel, which began in October 2023 amid the war in the Gaza Strip, the Islamic Group repeatedly claimed responsibility for rocket launches toward northern Israel, making it a target of Israeli strikes that hit several of its leaders and members.
Lebanon’s official National News Agency reported that the Israeli force that abducted Atwi, a former mayor, infiltrated on foot around 4 a.m. into his hometown of Habbariyé, located in the Hasbaya district.
Atwi’s arrest came hours after a tour by Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam of the border region, where the recent war displaced tens of thousands of residents and caused widespread destruction.
During the war and after the ceasefire, Israel captured and abducted at least twenty individuals.
Lebanon is demanding their release, as well as Israel’s withdrawal from positions it advanced to during the conflict, in addition to an end to its ongoing strikes on southern Lebanon. On Monday, the Israeli army announced that it had targeted “a Hezbollah terrorist operative in the Yanouh area.”
Following the ceasefire, Lebanon approved a plan to disarm Hezbollah. The army is expected to soon present the government with details of the second phase of the plan, after announcing the completion of its mission in the area south of the Litani River, a step Israel has said is insufficient.
