Israel kills Hamas commander in Lebanon, escalating tensions amid fragile ceasefire
By isabelle // 2025-04-04
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  • Israel assassinated senior Hamas commander Hassan Farhat and his two children in Lebanon, escalating tensions under a fragile U.S.-brokered ceasefire.
  • Lebanon and Hezbollah condemned the strike as a ceasefire violation, accusing Israel of expanding aggression.
  • Israel is carving "security zones" in Gaza, displacing thousands and eroding Palestinian sovereignty under the guise of security.
  • Over 50,000 Palestinians have been killed since October 2023, with Gaza's infrastructure collapsing amid relentless Israeli offensives.
  • International inaction enables Israel’s violations, fueling regional instability while civilians bear the brunt of violence.
In a predawn airstrike Friday, Israel assassinated senior Hamas commander Hassan Farhat and his two children in their Sidon, Lebanon, apartment, further straining a U.S.-brokered ceasefire that halted last year’s war with Hezbollah. The Israeli military claimed Farhat orchestrated a deadly rocket attack on Safed in 2024, justifying the strike as self-defense. However, Lebanon’s government condemned the attack as a "clear violation" of the truce, while Hezbollah warned it signals Israel’s intent to "expand aggression throughout Lebanon." Meanwhile, Israel is carving out so-called "security zones" in Gaza, effectively annexing swaths of Palestinian land under the guise of military necessity—a move critics decry as ethnic cleansing by another name. The strike, which ignited a fire in the residential Al-Zahour neighborhood, killed Farhat, his daughter Jenan, and his son Hamza, a fellow Hamas fighter. Lebanese emergency crews pulled three charred bodies from the rubble as Hezbollah vowed retaliation, accusing Israel of exploiting ceasefire loopholes to escalate violence. "The targeting of Sidon is evidence of the enemy’s intention to expand the scope of its aggression," the Iran-backed group declared. But this is just the latest in Israel’s relentless campaign of extrajudicial killings, which has intensified since it restarted its Gaza offensive on March 18. With over 50,000 Palestinians dead since October 2023, Israel now appears determined to erase any semblance of Palestinian sovereignty—whether through airstrikes in Lebanon or land seizures in Gaza.

Ceasefire in name only

The November 2023 truce, designed to halt cross-border clashes between Israel and Hezbollah, is crumbling. Israel has repeatedly violated the agreement, striking Beirut’s southern suburbs twice in recent weeks and now hitting Sidon, far from the traditional conflict zone. Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam called for "maximum pressure" on Israel to stop "a blatant attack on Lebanese sovereignty," but Washington has consistently greenlit such operations, dismissing them as "self-defense." Hamas, meanwhile, framed Farhat’s killing as part of Israel’s "cowardly assassination policy," warning it would not deter resistance. Yet Israel shows no signs of restraint. Just hours before the Sidon strike, its military expanded its northern Gaza "security zone," bulldozing homes and forcing thousands to flee under bombardment.

Gaza’s slow erasure

In Gaza, Israel is executing a land grab disguised as counterterrorism. Troops have pushed deeper into Shejaia, a Gaza City suburb, while declaring vast areas "no-go zones"—a tactic Palestinians say aims to depopulate the Strip permanently. "I swear to God, I am staying in the street. There is no shelter here," said Hemam Al-Rifi, a displaced Gazan whose family was killed in an airstrike on a school-turned-refugee camp. The Trump administration has remained conspicuously silent as Israel flouts international law. Meanwhile, Gaza’s health system has collapsed, clean water is scarce, and over 280,000 people have been displaced in the past two weeks alone.

A pattern of excuses

Israel’s playbook is predictable: label every victim a "terrorist," invoke self-defense, and escalate. Farhat’s killing follows the assassinations of Hamas officials Issam al-Daalis and Saleh al-Bardawil in Khan Yunis—attacks that also killed their families. In Lebanon, Israel has repeatedly struck civilian areas, claiming Hezbollah ties while ignoring ceasefire terms. With each strike, Israel undermines its moral authority and fuels regional instability. The Sidon attack isn’t just about Hamas—it’s about testing how far Israel can go before the international community intervenes. Israel’s strategy—eliminate enemies, seize land, and wait out global outrage—may work in the short term. But history shows oppression breeds resistance. As Gaza is carved into isolated ghettos and Lebanon teeters on the brink of another war, one thing is clear: violence begets violence. Until Israel is held accountable, the cycle will continue—and civilians, as always, will pay the price. Sources for this article include: Reuters.com France24.com TheCradle.co Reuters.com
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