Al-Jama’ah al-islamiyah commander Hussein Atawi who was killed on Tuesday by Israel
An Israeli drone strike south of the Lebanese capital killed a top commander from militant group Jama’a Islamiya, the group said in a statement on Tuesday.
There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military.
The strike on Tuesday morning killed Hussein Atawi, a leading commander in the armed branch of the Sunni Islamist Jama’a Islamiya known as the Fajr Forces, as he was driving from his home to his office near Beirut, in the town of Baawirte of Aley district .
BREAKING
— Open Source Intel (@Osint613) April 22, 2025
An unusual Israeli targeted strike near Beirut has eliminated Sheikh Hussein Atawi, a senior terrorist linked to both Hamxs and Hezbollah.
He was involved in planning and launching attacks on Israel, but he won’t be planning any more. pic.twitter.com/ETj2fVGJdL
The Fajr Forces fired rockets across Lebanon’s southern border at Israel throughout the year-long war that ended last year in a ceasefire deal. Israeli airstrikes killed several of the group’s members during the conflict.
Since the ceasefire, Israel has continued to carry out strikes on Lebanese territory, mostly targeting fighters from Lebanese armed group Hezbollah or its arms depots. Israeli troops also still occupy five hilltop positions in southern Lebanon.
Lebanon, Hezbollah and the Jama’a Islamiya have condemned the strikes and Israeli troop presence, calling them violations of the truce and of Lebanon’s sovereignty. Israel says the fighters and weapons pose a threat to Israeli civilians.
Al-Jamāʻah al-islāmīyah began as an umbrella organization for Egyptian militant student groups, formed, like the Egyptian Islamic Jihad, after the leadership of the Muslim Brotherhood renounced violence in the 1970s.
From 1992 to 1998 it fought an insurgency against the Egyptian government during which about 800 were killed including , Egyptian policemen , al-Jamāʻah al-islāmīyah militants , and civilians . dozens of tourists were among the civilians killed
The governments of Iran and Sudan, as well as al-Qaeda are the top supporters of the group which is designated as a terrorist group by the EU