Israel’s military said on Saturday that it had killed a terrorist in Hezbollah’s special operations Radwan Force in Aynata, southeastern Lebanon, as part of ongoing efforts to counter threats on the northern border.
In a separate operation, the Israel Defense Forces and the Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) confirmed that they killed Qasem Salah al-Husseini, a Lebanese terrorist affiliated with the Quds Force, the branch of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps that specializes in unconventional warfare and military intelligence operations, during a strike on July 3 in Kafr Sil, south of Beirut.
According to the IDF, al-Husseini played a central role in orchestrating attacks against Israeli civilians and troops. He was also a key figure in smuggling weapons from Iran through Syria to Lebanon, Judea, and Samaria, maintaining ties with arms dealers and operating under direct Iranian supervision.
The IDF said that his death delivers a significant blow to terrorist networks’ weapons smuggling and attack planning on multiple fronts.
A roadmap for Lebanon proposed by U.S. envoy Tom Barrack calls for the disarmament of non-state groups and the placement of all weapons under state control. Beirut is said to be committed to the principle of exclusive state control over arms.
Barrack said on social media Saturday that Lebanon now has a historic opportunity to move beyond sectarian divisions and realize its potential as “one country, one people, one army.”
Lebanon’s hope awakens!!! The opportunity is now. This is a historic moment to supersede the strained confessionalism of the past and finally fulfill 🇱🇧’s true promise of the hope of “One country, one people, one army.” As @POTUS has consistently shared with the world, "Lebanon…
— Ambassador Tom Barrack (@USAMBTurkiye) July 5, 2025
“Lebanon is a great place, with great people. Let’s make Lebanon great again,” Barrack wrote on X.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said during a meeting in Beirut on Saturday with British Foreign Secretary David Lammy that “the number of soldiers in Southern Lebanon will reach 10,000, and there will be no armed force there except the legitimate forces of the Lebanese army and UNIFIL.”
