Israel army says it 'eliminated' Hamas leader in Lebanon

The Israeli army said Monday its forces "eliminated" Hamas's leader in Lebanon, as it continued to target Iran-backed militant groups in the neighbouring country.

"Overnight ... the IAF (air force) struck and eliminated the terrorist Fatah Sharif, head of the Lebanon branch in the Hamas terrorist organisation," the military said in a statement.

Sharif "was responsible for coordinating Hamas' terror activities in Lebanon with Hezbollah operatives. He was also responsible for Hamas' efforts in Lebanon to recruit operatives and acquire weapons," the statement said.

"He led the Hamas terrorist organisation's force build-up efforts in Lebanon and operated to advance Hamas' interests in Lebanon, both politically and militarily," it added.

Hamas said earlier on Monday that Sharif was killed in an air strike on his home in the Al-Bass camp in southern Lebanon.

The group said he was killed with his wife, son and daughter in a "terrorist and criminal assassination".

Lebanon's official National News Agency reported an air strike on Al-Bass near the city of Tyre, saying it was the "first time" the camp had been targeted.

Sharif was also an employee of the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, but in recent months he had been put on administrative leave.

"Sharif was an UNRWA employee who was put on administrative leave without pay in March, and was undergoing an investigation following allegations that UNRWA received about his political activities," the agency told AFP in a statement.

"During the day he was the president of the UNRWA teachers union and at night he was the leader of Hamas in Lebanon," an Israeli military spokesman told AFP.