The Israeli army has eliminated the Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah. His death is a huge blow to the Lebanese terrorist organisation, which he led for 32 years with the help of Iran. The news shocked the Iranian regime to such an extent that Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, had to be transferred “to safety”.
A senior Israeli official told The Times of Israel that there was little chance that the Lebanese terrorist leader would have survived Friday’s air strike. Shortly afterwards, Israeli sources confirmed his elimination.
Hassan Nasrallah was targeted in the attack, and the missiles hit the target where he was supposed to be hiding. The Lebanese Shiite Hezbollah movement confirmed today that its leader had been killed, while pledging to continue the fight against Israel in support of Palestine and in defence of Lebanon, according to the Reuters news agency.
Who will be the successor?
A major challenge for Hezbollah in the future will be to replace the leader who has led the organisation for the last 32 years. In addition, it faces a second problem – lack of personnel – as many of Hezbollah’s top commanders have been killed in recent attacks. The Israeli intervention is, therefore, a success, just as they have succeeded in almost destroying Hamas in Gaza.
Hezbollah was founded in Lebanon by the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in the early 1980s. It is the central social, religious and political movement of the Lebanese Shiites. Nasrallah became the leader when his predecessor was killed by the Israelis and has lived in constant danger since then.
The latest conflict between Israel and Hezbollah has been ongoing since 2006, with the two sides exchanging attacks. The Hezbollah side also launched attacks on Israel on the 8th of October last year, just one day after a bloody attack by Hamas. On Saturday, sirens sounded again in northern Israel – a sign that Hezbollah is firing rockets at civilians.
M. P.
