From the Liveblog of
Friday, February 20, 2026
IDF says it targeted Hamas command center in Lebanon that was used to advance attacks on Israel
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleEmanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent
The IDF says the Hamas command center it targeted in an airstrike in the Ain al-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp near the Lebanese coastal city of Sidon was being used by the terror group to advance attacks on Israel.
“The command center that was struck had been used in recent months by Hamas terror operatives for preparations for terror activities against IDF troops in Lebanese territory, and included training intended to advance various terror attack plans against IDF troops and the State of Israel,” the military says in a statement, attaching footage of the strike.
The IDF says that the site was embedded “in the heart of a civilian population, cynically exploiting the village’s residents to advance the organization’s terror objectives and using them as human shields.”
According to the military, Hamas’s activities at the command center constituted a violation of the November 2024 ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon.
Lebanese media reported that the strike killed at least one person.
צה"ל תקף מפקדה ממנה פעלו מחבלים מארגון הטרור חמאס בדרום לבנון
צה"ל תקף מוקדם יותר היום מפקדה ממנה פעלו מחבלים מארגון הטרור חמאס במרחב עין אל-חלוה שבדרום לבנון.
המפקדה שהותקפה שימשה לאורך התקופה האחרונה את מחבלי ארגון הטרור חמאס עבור היערכות לפעולות טרור נגד כוחות צה"ל בשטח… pic.twitter.com/IT5xZbGOAL
— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) February 20, 2026
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