Hezbollah confirmed on Saturday that it's decades-long leader, Hassan Nasrallah, was killed on Friday in an Israeli airstrike in Beirut. Several other top commanders were with him in an underground compound beneath a group of buildings in the neighborhood of Dahiyeh, in Beirut.
In a statement, the group said Nasrallah "has joined his fellow martyrs" and vowed to "continue the holy war against the enemy and in support of Palestine."
Nasrallah's killing is set to send shocks throughout the Middle East, as he is the most senior figure targeted by Israel since the October 7 attack by Hamas, which catalyzed what has become a multi-front conflict.
On the day following the attacks, Hezbollah began launching rockets to Israel's north to support Hamas, both being part of the so-called "Axis of Resistance," militant groups backed by Iran and enemies of Israel.
Hamas expressed its condolences, saying that "history has proven that the resistance... whenever its leaders die as martyrs, will be succeeded on the same path by a generation of leaders who are more valiant, stronger and determined to continue the confrontation. Hezbollah maintains its fight is in support of Hamas, and Nasrallah had vowed the attacks on Israel will continue as long as the war in Gaza lasts.
However, the killing is indeed a large blow to Hezbollah, which had been hit incessantly by Israel over the past 10 days. The wave of crippling attacks began with the simultaneous detonation of pagers used by thousands of members of the group, killing scores and crippling hundreds.
It was followed by the explosion of walkie-talkies, the killing of top commanders Fuad Shukr and Ibrahim Aqil and thousands of attacks on what Israel described as ammunition and rockets depots, as well as launching areas. Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi said Saturday that the killing is "not the end of our toolbox," hinting that more strikes were planned. The army also mobilized additional reserve soldiers to serve across the country.
The cross-border exchanges of fire have killed hundreds in Lebanon, most of them fighters, and dozens in Israel, including soldiers. Tens of thousands of people on both sides of the border have been forced to flee their homes.
© 2024 Latin Times. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
