(image credit: Wikimedia)
Lebanon's Hezbollah confirmed on Saturday that its leader, Hassan Nasrallah, was killed after Israel launched a series of air strikes on the Lebanese capital, Beirut, a day earlier.
In an assassination that risks triggering all-out war in a region already on the brink, Israeli fighter jets dropped approximately 10 bunker-busting bombs on residential buildings in Beirut’s southern suburbs, an area colloquially known as Dahiyeh, on Friday.
Footage seen by Middle East Eye showed thick plumes of smoke rising from the blast site.
The Israeli military immediately confirmed it was behind the strikes and initially claimed it targeted Hezbollah's command centre. Later, Israeli media reported that Nasrallah, 64, was the intended target of the strikes, but did not confirm his death.
On Saturday, the Israeli army posted a message on X, saying: "Hassan Nasrallah will no longer be able to terrorise the world."
The Arabic spokesman of the Israeli army, Avichay Adraee, also said in a statement on X that Nasrallah was killed alongside Ali Karki, the commander of Hezbollah's southern front, as well as a number of other commanders.
"The message is clear: we will reach everyone who threatens the citizens of Israel in the north, in the south and on more distant fronts."
Later, Hezbollah said in a statement: "His eminence, the master of resistance, the righteous servant, has passed away to be with his lord who is pleased with him as a great martyr.
"The leadership of Hezbollah pledges... to continue its jihad in confronting the enemy [Israel], supporting Gaza and Palestine and defending Lebanon and its steadfast and honourable people."
The statement did not mention who would succeed Nasrallah or how the group would respond to the assassination of its long-time leader.
