Slain Hezbollah commander fought in some of the group's biggest battles, had close ties to leaders

The elite Hezbollah commander who was killed in an Israeli airstrike in southern Lebanon fought for the militant group for decades and took part in some of its biggest battles

BEIRUT -- The elite Hezbollah commander who was killed in an Israeli airstrike Monday in southern Lebanon fought for the group for decades and took part in some of its biggest battles.

Wissam al-Tawil, a commander in Hezbollah’s secretive Radwan Force deployed along the border with Israel, was killed when the strike hit his SUV in his hometown of Khirbet Silem. The strike was about 10 kilometers (6 miles) from the border, beyond the villages and towns that have witnessed the two sides exchange fire over the past three months.

Israeli officials have been demanding for weeks that the Radwan Force withdraw from the border area to allow tens of thousands of Israelis displaced by the fighting to return to their homes. During a visit to Israel last month, U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan said a “negotiated outcome” would be the best way to reassure residents of northern Israel.

Al-Tawil was the highest-ranking Hezbollah official to be killed since the exchange of fire along the Lebanon-Israel border began following the deadly Oct. 7 attack into southern Israel by Hamas, a Hezbollah ally.

A Hezbollah official told The Associated Press that al-Tawil had a role in sparking the summer 2006 war with Israel and fought in Syria’s civil war, where he was in charge of coordinating between the Lebanese group and the Syrian army in the battles against the Islamic State group.