By The Independent (World News) | Created at 2024-10-23 03:15:23 | Updated at 2024-10-23 05:32:29
2 hours ago
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Israel has confirmed the killing of Hashem Safieddine, a high-ranking Hezbollah leader and presumed successor to Hassan Nasrallah, in an airstrike on southern Beirut in early October.
Safieddine was the head of Hezbollah’s executive council and a key political figure.
The Israeli military announced on Tuesday evening that airstrikes in the Dahiyeh suburb had killed Safieddine and Ali Hussein Hazima, the head of Hezbollah’s intelligence branch, three weeks earlier. The airstrike also killed 25 other leaders.
This blow to Hezbollah’s leadership comes amid escalating fighting between Hezbollah and Israel, with ongoing airstrikes and clashes along the Israel-Lebanon border.
Hezbollah is yet to comment on Safieddine’s death.
Following Safieddine’s death, Naim Qassem, Hezbollah’s deputy secretary general, is now the sole remaining member of the group’s public-facing senior leadership. Qassem has represented Hezbollah since Nasrallah’s assassination but lacks the widespread popularity that the former secretary general commanded among supporters.
More follows.
