Hezbollah says top commander Shukr was in Beirut building hit by Israel

BEIRUT (TIP): Hezbollah said July 31 that senior military commander Fuad Shukr was inside a south Beirut building hit by Israel the previous day but that his fate remained unknown. The strike, which was followed by another, hours later, which killed Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, triggered fears the war in Gaza could escalate into a region-wide conflict. The Israeli military said its Tuesday strike had “eliminated” Shukr, a top Hezbollah commander it blamed for carrying out a weekend rocket attack on the annexed Golan Heights that killed 12 children in a Druze Arab town. Hezbollah said in a statement that “the great jihadist commander brother Fuad Shukr (Hajj Mohsen) was present” in the building targeted by “the Zionist enemy”. Rescue teams “have been working since the incident happened… to remove the rubble… and we are still waiting for the results of this operation regarding the fate of the great commander and other citizens. (AP)