Hezbollah’s senior military commander Fuad Shukr was killed in a targeted operation after being lured to the seventh floor of a building in Beirut by a fraudulent phone call.

Shukr, a veteran Hezbollah strategist and close confidant of the group’s leadership, was reportedly contacted by a seemingly trusted source and instructed to attend an important meeting at the specified location. Shukr was unaware that the call was part of a well-coordinated plan to eliminate him.

When Shukr reached the seventh floor of the building, he was ambushed and killed. Security experts believe it was a targeted operation by an enemy intelligence agency. The details of the raid remain classified, but sources suggest the operation required extensive surveillance and inside knowledge of Shukr’s movements.

Shukr played a key role in Hezbollah’s military operations, particularly in Lebanon and Syria, and his death represents a major loss for the group. Lebanese authorities have launched an investigation into the incident, focusing on how the attackers were able to lure Shukr into the deadly trap.

This incident underscores the ongoing shadow war between Hezbollah and its adversaries, in which intelligence and counterintelligence operations continue to play a deadly game of cat and mouse. The loss of Fuad Shukr will likely trigger a violent response from Hezbollah and further escalate tensions in an already unstable region.

Initial assessments suggested that Israel’s superior technology and hacking capabilities had overcome Hezbollah’s counter-surveillance system, the official said.

Shukr, his wife, two other women and two children were killed in the attack on July 30.

Following the killing of the senior Hezbollah leader, Hezbollah warned that red lines had been crossed and that it would avenge Israel for the attack. This has raised fears of a wider conflict in the Middle East. Hezbollah has not yet responded to the attack, which has also been linked to ongoing ceasefire talks in Gaza.