The Israeli military considers the force a major threat to its northern border and has portrayed Aqeel, whom it claimed to have killed on Friday, as its de facto commander.

Ali Reda Abbas was appointed commander of Hezbollah's Radwan unit following an Israeli airstrike that killed former commander Ibrahim Aqil and 16 other key leaders.

Ibrahim Aqil, who Israel said it killed in an air strike on Beirut's southern suburbs Friday, headed Hezbollah's elite Radwan unit and had been on a US sanctions list for nearly a decade.The United States described Aqil as a "key leader" in the group and offered a $7 million reward for information about the man who became the second top Hezbollah commander killed in nearly a year of clashes between the militant group and Israel over the Gaza war.

The Radwan Force is central to Hezbollah’s military doctrine, which emphasizes asymmetric warfare against a technologically superior adversary like Israel.

Israeli officials said Friday they eliminated top Hezbollah commanders in a targeted strike in Beirut, including an officer involved in planning multiple attacks against Israel. The Israeli air

Lebanon's Hezbollah movement, which has been exchanging fire with Israel for months, on Saturday announced that two commanders of its elite operations unit had been killed by an Israeli strike

Ibrahim Aqil, also known as Tahsin, served in Hezbollah's highest military body, the Jihad Council. He also led the elite Radwan forces, the outfit's top military unit responsible for carrying out its jihad-related operations on the ground.