The Israeli military has carried out a retaliatory strike in the Lebanese capital, Beirut.

The target of the strike is believed to have been a senior Hezbollah military commander, Sky News understands.

The Israel Defence Forces claimed the commander of the armed group was “responsible for the murder of the children in Majdal Shams” – referring to the strike on a football pitch in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights that killed a dozen children on Saturday.

Israel has blamed Hezbollah but the group denied being responsible for the attack.

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What is Hezbollah?

A Hezbollah official said the strike on Tuesday hit Beirut’s southern suburb of Haret Hreik – the area around Hezbollah’s Shura Council.

The fate of the commander targeted in the strike remains unknown, according to one security source.

Sky News’ special correspondent Alex Crawford said the images coming out of the scene shows that a “very large area had been hit, that centres around one building”.

“There is a fair amount of fire and a fair number of other buildings that have been impacted,” Crawford said, while travelling to the site.

“It is a very densely populated area, it is a Hezbollah stronghold.”

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