Civil defence workers inspect a vehicle that was damaged near the building hit by a drone strike attributed to Israel targeting Hamas deputy leader Saleh al-Arouri in the southern suburb of Beirut on Jan. 3, 2024. (Credit: Anwar Amro/AFP)
WASHINGTON — The United States remains incredibly concerned about the risk of the conflict in Gaza spreading to other fronts after the killing of a senior Hamas leader in Beirut, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said on Wednesday.
Israel has neither confirmed nor denied it was behind the assassination on Tuesday. Lebanese, Hezbollah, and Hamas officials have all attributed the attack — which was carried out by a drone strike in the southern suburbs of Beirut, killing seven people and injuring at least 11 others — to Israel.
Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati contacted Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdullah Bou Habib to requested that an urgent complaint be submitted to the United Nations Security Council regarding what he referred to as a blatant breach of Lebanese sovereignty, along with all the recent Israeli violations against Lebanese sovereignty along its southern border.
Miller said Washington was not given advance notice of the strike, and that he could not offer an assessment on who carried it the attack, but called Saleh al-Arouri "a brutal terrorist with civilian blood on his hands."
Arouri was deputy leader of Hamas' political wing and had been living in exile in Lebanon since 2018. He was a key negotiator for Hamas during the hostage exchange that took place during the last week of November 2023, between Hamas and Israel, amid a temporary cease-fire.