On May 6, 2026, the IDF eliminated Ahmad Ghaleb Ballout (“Malek”), commander of Hezbollah’s Radwan Unit, in a precise and targeted strike. This was the first Israeli airstrike in Beirut since the ceasefire of April 18.
At the time of the strike, Ballout was hiding in a safehouse apartment located in a building adjacent to the Al-Shahid Mahmoud Qaaiq Middle School (ثانوية الشهيد محمود قعيق) in the Haret Hreik neighborhood of Beirut’s southern Dahiyeh.
This serves as further evidence that Hezbollah’s terrorist infrastructure and operatives at all levels — including its most senior commanders — not only operate from within civilian environments used as human shields, but deliberately choose sensitive civilian sites such as schools, hospitals, and similar facilities as the precise locations for their activities, thereby creating what can be described as a “double human shield.”
Ballout had served as the acting commander of the Radwan Unit for approximately two years, following the elimination of his predecessor, Wissam al-Tawil, in January 2024. During his tenure, Ballout led efforts to rebuild the unit, focusing on force generation and operational recovery, with particular emphasis on restoring the unit’s capability to conduct cross-border infiltration operations against Israeli territory.
