A prominent Hezbollah operative in the terror group’s air defense array, who was reportedly blinded in Israel’s so-called pager attack last year, was killed in a drone strike in southern Lebanon on Monday, the military said.

Hassan Atwi was killed alongside his wife, Zainab Raslan, in a strike targeting their car in Zebdine, on the outskirts of Nabatieh.

The IDF said Atwi was a “significant source of knowledge” in Hezbollah, and led efforts to rebuild infrastructure and procure equipment for the air defense array. The military says he also maintained contacts with Iranian officials who supplied Hezbollah with air defense systems.

According to Lebanese media, Atwi was blind due to the exploding pager attack that targeted Hezbollah members last year.

Lebanon’s National News Agency reported that the couple had two sons killed during the 2023-24 Israel-Hezbollah conflict.

The IDF said Atwi’s activities “constituted a violation of the understandings between Israel and Lebanon,” and his killing was a blow to Hezbollah’s efforts to re-establish itself.

????شهيـــ… دا العد. و|ن في زبدين: مصاب البيجر حسن عطوي وزوجته السيدة زينب رسلان التي كانت تقود السيارة

© The Times of Israel