A portrait of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah sits amid destruction in the area hit by overnight Israeli airstrikes in Saksakiyeh on September 26, 2024.
Mahmoud Zayyat | Afp | Getty Images
The Israeli army on Saturday officially announced the destruction of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, one day after carrying out an attack. large-scale attack in Lebanon.
“Hassan Nasrallah is dead,” Israeli military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel 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 when fighters carried out what they described as a “targeted attack” on Hezbollah headquarters in the Lebanese capital Beirut.
Among other Hezbollah commanders, the IDF said Ali Karki, commander of Hezbollah’s southern front, was also killed in the attack.
CNBC could not independently verify the report. There have been no comments or statements from Hezbollah at this time.
Israel’s announcement marks what is seen as a major blow to Hezbollah several months of conflict. The IDF said Nasrallah was the group’s “central decision maker” and “strategic leader.”
Lebanese political analyst Ronnie Chatah said on Saturday that if the news of Nasrallah’s death is confirmed, Hezbollah, which could already hold power with absolute authority, develops into a paramilitary force. The world’s largest and becoming the world’s most sophisticated terrorist organization, will now have ended.
“I think the symbolism cannot be overstated. This is by far the deepest psychological blow to this organization since its founding. Hezbollah could not be what it is without Hassan Nasrallah,” he said more.
Chatah said what emerges 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 played a key role in turning Hezbollah into a major military and political force. He has led the Lebanon-based group since 1992, taking power after Israel assassinated the group’s previous leader, Abbas al-Musawi.
Hezbollah, recognized as a terrorist organization by the US, UK and other countries, known motivated by violent opposition to Israel and its ability to counter Western influence in the Middle East, according to the think tank Council on Foreign Relations.
Firas Maksad, a senior fellow at the Washington-based Institute for Middle East Studies, said Saturday that news of Nasrallah’s killing would have “significant” ramifications in the region.
“Nasrallah was the preeminent and most iconic Arab leader in Iran’s regional axis. His killing symbolizes the direct confrontation between Israel and Iran over the future of Lebanon and the Levant. This has could be a harbinger of a coming conflict, not the end,” Maksad said.
“Locally, Nasrallah is also the most powerful leader [in] Shia community in Lebanon. His assassination left a huge void and caused serious concern [questions] about the future role of the community in Lebanon’s ancient sectarian system,” he continued.
“In the short term, it is likely to exacerbate political polarization and contribute to making a country with a weak central government more fragile, contributing to increased unrest,” Maksad said. fine”.
– CNBC’s Emma Graham contributed to this report.
