Israel’s military says Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah has been killed in an
air strike on Beirut.
In a statement, they said: ‘The IDF will continue to harm anyone who promotes and engages in terrorism against the citizens of the State of Israel.
‘Fighter jets of the Air Force under the precise intelligence guidance of the intelligence wing and the defense system, attacked the central headquarters of Hezbollah, which is located underground, under a residential building in the Daha area of Beirut.’
Hezbollah – born out of the long Lebanese Civil War – is both a Shiite Muslim party and a militant group. It is anti-Israel and cozy with Iran, regularly receiving weapons from the country.
It has backed Hamas since the start of October 7 conflict between Israel and Palestine.
The group’s military power grew throughout the 2000s, and in 2021 its leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said it had 100,000 fighters.
Since the October 7 attacks, daily clashes have occurred between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, killing hundreds and displacing many more on both sides of the border.
Further strikes were carried out in Bekaa Valley in eastern Lebanon.
Hours before the strikes, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the United Nations, vowing that his country’s campaign against Hezbollah would continue – further dimming hopes for an internationally backed cease-fire.
Mr Netanyahu abruptly cut his United States visit short and returned to Israel.
Mr Nasrallah has been in hiding for years, rarely appearing in public. He regularly gives speeches, but always by video from unknown locations.
More than 720 people have been killed in Lebanon since the conflict escalated on Monday, according to Lebanon’s health ministry.
The United Nations says the number displaced by the conflict from southern Lebanon has more than doubled, with more than 211,000 people affected.
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