“Yesterday evening (Tuesday), the (Israeli air force)… struck the terrorist Hossam Qasem Ghorab, a Hezbollah terrorist who operated from Lebanese territory to direct terrorist cells in Syria,” the army said in a statement.

The Syria-based cells “planned to launch rocket attacks toward the Golan Heights”, it added, referring to the area annexed by Israel following the 1967 war with Syria.

Lebanon’s cabinet yesterday tasked the army with developing a plan to disarm resistance group Hezbollah by the end of the year, an unprecedented step since civil war factions gave up their weapons decades ago.

The decision followed heavy US pressure and came as part of implementing a November ceasefire that sought to end more than a year of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, including two months of all-out war.

The confrontation left the resistance group badly weakened, though it retains part of its arsenal.