Smoke billows from the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted a neighborhood in the southern suburbs of Beirut early on September 28, 2024.
Fadel Itani | Afp | Getty Images
The Israeli military on Saturday officially announced the killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, a day after carrying out a large-scale attack in Lebanon.
“Hassan Nasrallah is dead,” Israeli army spokesman Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani said via social media platform X.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said Nasrallah, who led the Iran-backed militant group for more than three decades, was killed on Friday as warplanes carried out what it described as a “targeted strike” on Hezbollah’s headquarters. in Beirut, the capital of Lebanon.
Among other Hezbollah commanders, the IDF said Ali Karki, the commander of Hezbollah’s southern front, was also killed in the attack.
Smoke rises as surrounding buildings were damaged as a boy is seen in the debris after Israeli warplanes targeted the Dahiyeh area in Beirut, Lebanon on September 28, 2024.
Houssam Shbaro | Anadolu | Getty Images
CNBC could not independently verify the report. There has been no comment or statement from Hezbollah yet.
Israel’s announcement marks what will be seen as a monumental blow to Hezbollah after several months of conflict. The IDF said Nasrallah was the “central decision-maker” and “strategic leader” of the group.
Lebanese political analyst Ronnie Chatah said on Saturday that if the news of Nasrallah’s death is confirmed, Hezbollah, which was able to exercise power with absolute authority, would become the largest paramilitary force in the world and become the most sophisticated terrorist organization in the world. , now it’s over.
“I think the symbolism cannot be overstated. This is by far the deepest psychological blow to this organization since its inception. Hezbollah cannot be the same without Hassan Nasrallah,” he added.
Chatah said what will emerge in the coming months and years will be “something else,” an organization that will remain intact, “albeit much smaller.”
“A Big Void”
Nasrallah, 64, is considered one of the most influential figures in the Middle East and has been instrumental in turning Hezbollah into a major military and political force. He has led the Lebanon-based group since 1992, taking over after the group’s previous leader, Abbas al-Musawi, was assassinated by Israel.
FILE PHOTO: Lebanon’s Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah addresses his supporters during a public appearance at a religious procession, a day before Shiites celebrate the day of Ashura, in the southern suburbs of Beirut, Lebanon, October 11, 2016.
Aziz Taher | Reuters
Hezbollah, which is recognized as a terrorist organization by the US, Britain and other nations, is known driven by his violent opposition to Israel and his resistance to Western influence in the Middle East, according to the Council on Foreign Relations.
Firas Maksad, a senior fellow at the Washington-based Middle East Institute think tank, said on Saturday that news of Nasrallah’s assassination would lead to “significant” regional repercussions.
“Nasrallah was the pre-eminent and most iconic Arab leader in Iran’s regional axis. His assassination is emblematic of a frontal conflict between Israel and Iran over the future of Lebanon and the Levant. end,” Maksand said.
“Locally, Nasrallah was also the most powerful leader [in] Shiite community of Lebanon. His killing leaves a great void and raises serious questions [questions] about the community’s future role in Lebanon’s archaic sectarian system,” he continued.
“In the short term, it is likely to exacerbate political polarization and further contribute to the fragility of a country with a weak central government, contributing to further unrest,” Maksand said.
— CNBC’s Emma Graham contributed to this report.
