Hezbollah confirmed the killing of its leader Hassan Nasrallah in a massive airstrike in a densely populated Beirut neighborhood on Friday night.
Earlier the Israeli military said in a message that the Hezbollah leader was “eliminated” in the Beirut strike. Specifically, in a statement, the Israeli Army states that along with Nasrallah, the commander of the so-called Hezbollah’s Southern Front, Ali Karaki, was killed along with other commanders.
A blow to the heart of Hezbollah
“The strike was carried out while top Hezbollah officials were at their headquarters participating in the coordination of terrorist acts against the citizens of the State of Israel,” the military says.
The message of the Israeli army
The lieutenant general Herzi Halevi and Chief of Staff of the Israeli Army after the assassination of Hezbollah Hassan Nasrallah stated that Israel will reach out to anyone who threatens the country and its citizens.
“It’s not the end of the tools in the toolbox. The message is simple, whoever threatens the citizens of the State of Israel, we will know how to reach them,” he said.
“During Hassan Nasrallah’s 32-year reign as Hezbollah’s Secretary General, he was responsible for killing many Israeli civilians and soldiers and planning and executing thousands of terrorist activities,” the statement said.
“He was responsible for directing and executing terrorist attacks around the world in which citizens of various nationalities were murdered. Nasrallah was the central decision-maker and strategic leader of the organization.”
140 Hezbollah targets in Lebanon were hit overnight
The Israeli military said today it struck more than 140 Hezbollah targets in Lebanon overnight, from where the militant Islamist movement fires rockets into Israel in support of the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
“Since last night, the military has struck more than 140 targets (…) of Hezbollah, mainly (rocket) launchers targeting Israeli civilians, buildings where weapons were stored (…) and other terrorist infrastructure facilities (…) in the area of Beirut,” the army said in a statement.
Airstrikes continue in Beirut
Meanwhile, according to eyewitnesses cited by Reuters, Israeli airstrikes in the southern suburbs of Beirut continued today. Witnesses said smoke could be seen rising from the area.
Moreover, according to a Lebanese security source cited by AFP, a new Israeli strike today targeted southern Beirut, Hezbollah’s stronghold, after a night of intense shelling. According to the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, a building was hit.
Israel is deploying three reserve battalions
The Israeli army announced today that it is deploying three reserve battalions to bolster the defenses of its central command, whose operational areas include the occupied West Bank.
The decision comes ahead of a Jewish holiday season that often sees tensions rise in Jerusalem and the West Bank, where conflict with Palestinian militants has rekindled during Israel’s ongoing war against the Islamist Palestinian movement. Hamas at Gaza Strip.
“According to the assessment of the situation, the IDF is calling up three reserve battalions for operational activities and to strengthen defenses at the Central Command,” the army said in a statement, which did not elaborate. .
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