Israeli military abducts alleged Hezbollah naval ops official in north Lebanon sea raid

Israeli naval forces have captured a senior Hezbollah operative in northern Lebanon as the conflict between the Iran-backed group and Israel showed few signs of easing.

An Israeli military official said in a statement that IDF forces captured a “senior operative of Hezbollah” and took him back to Israel for investigation by military intelligence.

The media outlet Axios cited Israeli sources as saying the captured man is called Imad Amhaz and is allegedly responsible for Hezbollah’s naval operations.

Two Lebanese military officials confirmed that a naval force landed in Batroun, about 30 kilometres north of the capital Beirut, and abducted a Lebanese citizen.

The operation marks the first time Israel has announced it deployed troops deep into northern Lebanon to take a senior Hezbollah operative captive since the conflict between the two sides escalated in late September.

Hezbollah issued a statement describing what happened as a “Zionist aggression in the Batroun area.” The statement did not give details or confirm whether a Hezbollah member was captured by Israel.

Soon after Israel went public about the operation, Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati called on Lebanon’s foreign minister to file a complaint against Israel at the UN Security Council.

Recounting the event, Lebanese residents from the apartment building where the man was seized said the armed group introduced themselves as state security.

“We were terrified. They were breaking into the apartment next to ours,” Hussein Delbani said.

“I thought a state agency was doing a security operation.”

Kandice Ardiel, a spokesperson for the UN peacekeeping force deployed in Lebanon, UNIFIL, denied allegations by some local journalists who said that the peacekeepers helped the Israeli landing force in the operation.

“Disinformation and false rumours are irresponsible and put peacekeepers at risk,” Ardiel said.

Cross-border fire

Hezbollah and Israel have traded almost daily fire since the war in Gaza began in October last year.

Hezbollah is ideologically-aligned with the Gaza-based militant group Hamas and Hezbollah says its strikes on Israel are in solidarity with the Palestinian people.

The year-long cross-border fighting, which has displaced tens of thousands on both sides of the border, erupted into full-blown war on 1 October when Israeli forces launched a ground invasion of southern Lebanon for the first time since 2006.