Israel is working to confirm if it killed the new presumed leader of the Iranian-backed terrorist organization Hezbollah after a series of strikes at Beirut.

The strikes hit the southern suburbs of Beirut, and Israeli officials told multiple news outlets the target was Hashem Safieddine, who was seen as the likely successor to Hassan Nasrallah. 

Israeli officials say Safieddine was meeting with other members of the terrorist group in an underground bunker. However, as of Friday morning, it was unclear if he had been killed.

The strikes come days after Israel launched what it is calling “limited, localized, and targeted raids” in southern Lebanon, targeting Hezbollah after a year of organization firing rockets into the Jewish state’s northern region. 

Hezbollah began firing rockets at towns in Israel in solidarity with Hamas last year, forcing tens of thousands of residents to evacuate the area. And Prime Minister Netanyahu vowed Israel will return the displaced citizens to their homes. 

Hezbollah fired around 100 rockets into Israel on Friday, the AP reported. 

In the last two weeks, Israel has carried out a series of strikes targeting high-ranking Hezbollah commanders using exploding pagers and airstrikes. Over the weekend, Israel confirmed it had killed Hezbollah’s longtime leader, Nasrallah. 

After the strike on Nasrallah, Iran fired a barrage of ballistic missiles toward Israel in retaliation. There were images that appeared to show some missiles hitting the ground, but no reports of Israeli casualties from the attack. However, there was a report of the death of a Palestinian citizen in the West Bank city of Jericho.
American officials have vowed Iran would face “severe consequences” if it fired its missiles. Mr. Netanyahu promised Iran that it would “pay” for its strike.