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A fresh explosion in South Beirut has killed Saleh Al-Arouri, a top Hamas official, along with two other senior al-Qassam Brigades officials.
57-year-old Al-Arouri was the deputy head of Hamas's political bureau and one of the founders of the group’s military wing operating in the Gaza strip.
Eye witnesses say the attack was launched by a drone.
“We heard it, it was not a military jet it was a drone, it has a low sound. It was a drone that launched two loaded missiles then it dropped down with an explosion and exploded.”
Israel has not claimed responsibility for the attack which occurred in a Hamas office in Daliyeh, one of Beirut’s southern suburbs.
But Hamas claims the airstrike was carried out by an Israeli drone.
Lebanon's national news agency says a total of seven people were killed in the strike and two local security sources say the attack had targeted a meeting.
The explosion shook Musharafieh, another one of the Lebanese capital's southern suburbs, which are a stronghold of the militant Hezbollah group, an ally of Hamas.
The strike also caused fire in Hadi Nasrallah street south of Beirut.
The United Nations Associate Spokesperson for the Secretary-General, Florencia Soto Nino has condemned the strike, saying the attack could spread the Israel-Hamas war beyond the Gaza strip.
“The developments are extremely worrying and I think this highlights what the Secretary-General just said about the dangers of the spillover of this conflict in the wider region. Because of the escalating tensions and the fragility of the situation in the region, we are calling for maximum restraint from all parties. We don't want any rash actions that could trigger further violence.”
The Lebanese Hezbollah group says they consider the killing of Saleh Al-Arouri an attack on Lebanon as a whole and promised to retaliate.
But Israel’s military spokesman Daniel Hagari says the force remains focused on fighting against Hamas and are ready for any response.
“The IDF ( Israel Defence Forces) is in a very high state of readiness in all arenas, in defence and attack. We are on high readiness for any scenario. The most important thing to say tonight is that we are focused and remain focused on fighting against Hamas. In Gaza, our forces continue to fight, with an emphasis on the Khan Younis area, operating above and below the ground, killing terrorists and continuing to destroy the terrorist infrastructure.”
The airstrike has sparked protests in the West Bank cities of Ramallah, Jenin, Hebron and Saleh al-Arouri's home town of Aroura.
The crowd were chanting slogans, demanding revenge for the killing of Arouri, and calling on Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, secretary-general of Lebanon's Hezbollah, to take action.
Protesters claim the assassination of the leader will not stop the fight against Israel as more leaders will emerge.
And Mr Arouri’s sister Um Kutayba says she sees it as an honour for him to die for his cause.
“Thank God, this is an honour from God. His martyrdom is an honour, he used to wish for martyrdom, and we are not surprised, since this is the method of Israel's occupation. The occupation does not skip any wrongdoing, is this a surprise? It is not, it is only natural for the occupation, but thank God. Every child in Palestine is a leader and there will be stronger leaders and they will follow in his footsteps.”
It comes as a wartime opinion poll among Palestinians shows a rise in support for Hamas even in the devastated Gaza Strip, with 44 per cent of people saying they supported the group at the beginning of December, a huge increase from 12 per cent in September.
Meanwhile the growing humanitarian disaster in the Gaza Strip is taking its toll on civilians who have suffered under a blockade and bombardment for over 12 weeks since October 7.
The United Nations' World Food Programme estimates that 26 per cent of Gazans, or 576,600 people, are facing starvation and there is a risk of famine occurring within the next six months if the current situation persists.
One displaced person in the southern city of Rafah says having to cook using fire due to a lack of fuel or electricity has had impacts on his health.
“The fact that I am using fire to cook and am standing right in front of it all day has caused me some serious trouble in my chest. I am always coughing. Children on the other hand are mostly the ones affected from the lack of cleanliness ending up with stomach flu due to the unclean drinking water, bathrooms are unclean and the water running in them is also unclean.”
