Beirut: Senior Hamas official Hassan Farhat and two of his sons were killed early Friday morning in an Israeli drone strike targeting an apartment in the city of Sidon in southern Lebanon, according to a Lebanese security source and Lebanon's Al Jadeed TV Channel.
A Lebanese security official told Xinhua that "an Israeli drone fired two air-to-ground missiles at an apartment in the Al-Zahraa neighborhood in central Sidon, where the Hamas leader Hassan Farhat was residing."
"The strike caused a fire in the apartment, resulting in the deaths of Farhat and his two sons," said the official.
Civil Defence personnel extinguished the blaze, while a Lebanese Red Cross ambulance transported the bodies to a hospital, said the report.
Despite a ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel that began on Nov. 27, 2024, the Israeli military has occasionally carried out strikes in Lebanon, claiming they were aimed at neutralizing "Hezbollah threats."
Israel has also maintained a military presence at five key points along the Lebanese border, even after a deadline for a full withdrawal passed on Feb. 18.
