BEIRUT – A Hezbollah commander was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Beirut’s southern suburbs on Friday. Ibrahim Akil, 61, was a top military official of the Lebanese militant group, leading its elite forces. He had been on Washington’s wanted list for years.

Akil was the second senior Hezbollah commander killed in an Israeli airstrike in Beirut in as many months, significantly impacting the group’s command structure.

The strike came following a suspected Israeli attack targeting Hezbollah communications, resulting in explosions that killed 12 people, predominantly Hezbollah members, and wounded thousands.

As a member of Hezbollah’s highest military body, the Jihad Council, and head of the elite Radwan Forces, Akil had extensive experience in urban warfare and counterinsurgency from his time in Syria.

Israel reported that the strike on Beirut’s southern Dahiya district also killed 10 other Hezbollah operatives.

Akil, born in Baalbek, Lebanon, joined Hezbollah in the 1980s and rose through the ranks to become a key leader in the organization. He was under U.S. sanctions and had a $7 million reward on his head.

Hezbollah’s Radwan Forces, consisting of 7,000 to 10,000 fighters trained in special operations and urban warfare, played a minimal role in the recent conflict between Hezbollah and Israel. The fighting has mainly involved missile exchanges along border areas.

The strike on Akil marks a new phase in the war with Israel, signifying an aerial campaign and targeted assassination of military leaders, according to experts.