Israel has stepped up efforts to assassinate Hezbollah’s top leaders in recent weeks as part of a campaign to compel the Iranian-backed militant group to stop firing rockets and drones at Israel. For nearly a year, Hezbollah has been attacking Israel in solidarity with Hamas in Gaza, displacing tens of thousands of Israelis from border communities.

Aqil was a Hezbollah leader who sat on the group’s military council. He was wanted by the U.S. government for organizing a spate of bombings in the 1980s.