Muhammad Haydar, the “de facto chief of staff” of Hezbollah, was the target of an IDF attack in Beirut overnight Friday.

The IDF fired five missiles at an eight-story building in central Beirut, killing at least 11 people.

An Israeli security source confirmed to Kan News that Haydar, who is also a member of Hezbollah’s Jihad Council, was the target of the attack,

However, Israeli security sources told the Saudi Al-Hadath news channel that the assassination attempt failed.

Haydar is considered to have been close to slain Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah. He served as a member of the Lebanese parliament on behalf of Hezbollah from 2005 to 2009. The U.S. Treasury imposed sanctions on him in 2019 due to his terror activities.

Haydar is regarded as a senior military figure in Hezbollah and effectively leads the terrorist organization along with military commander Haythan Ali Tabatabai in the wake of the eliminations of Nasrallah and other Hezbollah leaders. The US imposed sanctions on Tabatabai in 2016.

The IDF did not take responsibility for the attack but stated that several rounds of strikes were carried out in Lebanon over the past 24 hours. Additionally, the IDF reported in recent hours that the air force struck two buildings in the Shuweifat neighborhood in the Dahieh district of Beirut.

(YWN’s Jerusalem desk is keeping you updated after tzeis ha’Shabbos in Israel)