The Israeli military warned it was on high alert as Hezbollah confirmed that its leader Hassan Nasrallah had been assassinated in an airstrike in Beirut, amplifying fears of a wider war in the Middle East.
Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei said Nasrallah’s death “will not go unavenged” as he remembered the Hezbollah leader as the “flag-bearer of resistance” in the region.
The airstrike was carried out as Hezbollah’s leadership met at their headquarters in the southern Beirut suburb of Dahiyeh. Ali Karki, the commander of Hezbollah’s southern front, was among several commanders also killed, the Israeli military claimed.
Iranian media reported that a prominent general in the country’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard also died in the strike. Abbas Nilforushan, 58, was sanctioned in 2022 by the US government, which identified him as deputy commander for operations.
Israel has maintained its barrage of strikes in southern Beirut and eastern Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley, as Hezbollah launched dozens of projectiles across northern and central Israel and the Israel-occupied West Bank.
A total of 1,030 people, including 156 women and 87 children, have been killed in Israeli strikes in Lebanon in less than two weeks, the country’s health minister said.
Key Points
- More than 1,000 killed in Israeli strike on Lebanon
- Israel on high alert and ‘ready for a wider escalation’, military says
- Hezbollah confirms decades-long leader Hassan Nasrallah killed in airstrike
- Iran’s Khamenei ‘moved to secure location’ after Israel targets Hezbollah chief
Israel infiltrated Hezbollah to obtain intelligence
06:00
Jane Dalton
After Hassan Nasrallah’s killing, Hezbollah faces the enormous challenge of plugging the infiltration in its ranks that allowed Israel to destroy weapons sites, booby-trap its communications and assassinate the veteran leader, whose whereabouts had been a closely guarded secret.
Israel’s deadly detonation of hundreds of booby-trapped pagers and radios was the culmination of a rapid succession of strikes that have killed half of Hezbollah’s leadership council and decimated its top military command.
One source familiar with Israeli thinking told Reuters, less than 24 hours before the strike, that Israel has spent 20 years focusing intelligence efforts on Hezbollah and could hit Nasrallah when it wanted, including in the headquarters.
The person called the intelligence “brilliant”.
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his close circle of ministers authorised the attack on Wednesday, Israeli officials said. The attack took place while Netanyahu was in New York.
Nasrallah had avoided public appearances since 2006.
“This is a massive blow and intelligence failure for Hezbollah,” said Magnus Ranstorp, a veteran Hezbollah expert at the Swedish Defence University. “They knew that he was meeting. He was meeting with other commanders. And they just went for him.”
Small-scale ‘border movements’ into Lebanon may have begun - report
05:30
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Small-scale “border movements” into Lebanon may have begun for a limited ground operation against Hezbollah, according to reports.
While Israel has not confirmed a possible launch of a ground operation but is prepared for one, ABC News reported citing US officials.
Officials in America received a “few minutes notice” at best, before Hassan Nasrallah’s assassination on Friday, the officials added.
Biden says killing of Hezbollah leader ‘measure of justice’
05:10
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
President Joe Biden called the death of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah “a measure of justice” for the thousands of civilians that he and the terrorist organization killed over the last three decades.
“Hassan Nasrallah and the terrorist group he led, Hezbollah, were responsible for killing hundreds of Americans over a four-decade reign of terror,” Biden said in a statement.
“His death from an Israeli airstrike is a measure of justice for his many victims, including thousands of Americans, Israelis, and Lebanese civilians.”
More here.
Iran says Hezbollah leader’s death ‘will not go unavenged’
04:50
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei said the death of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah “will not go unavenged” after he was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Beirut.
Khamenei announced five days of public mourning for Nasrallah as he remembered the Hezbollah leader as the “flag-bearer of resistance” in the region.
Israel yesterday said it was on “high alert” for possible retaliation from the Iran-led “Axis of Resistance” in the Middle East.
“Our forces are on high alert, our intelligence is up,” Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Nadav Shoshani told reporters.
Similarly, prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the coming days would bring “significant challenges” and warned Iran against trying to strike.
Iran’s Ayatollah urged Muslims across the world to stand by Hezbollah “with their resources and help”. “The fate of this region will be determined by the forces of resistance, with Hezbollah at the forefront,” he said.
Hundreds of protesters took to the streets of Tehran, waving Hezbollah flags and chanting “Death to Israel” and “Death to Netanyahu the murderer”.
Iran’s UN ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani wrote to the heads of the UN and the Security Council yesterday calling for an emergency council meeting over the attack.
He warned Israel not to attack any of its diplomatic or consular premises, or its representatives.
More than 1,000 killed in Israeli strike in Lebanon
04:30
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
A total of 1,030 people, including 156 women and 87 children, have been killed in Israeli strikes in Lebanon in less than two weeks, the country’s health minister said.
The Israeli army again warned Lebanese residents to stay away from Hezbollah combat equipment and facilities, including in the southern suburbs of Beirut and southern Lebanon.
The US state department issued an alert urging American citizens to leave the country.
The Israeli military yesterday carried out more than 140 airstrikes in southern Beirut and eastern Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley, including targeting a storage facility for anti-ship missiles in Beirut suburb of Dahiyeh.
Israel braces for retaliation after Nasrallah’s assassination
04:05
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said targeting Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was “an essential condition to achieving the goals we set”.
Hezbollah confirmed yesterday that one of its founding members, who has been linked by Israel to attacks on Israeli and Jewish targets, had been killed in an airstrike in southern Beirut.
In his first public remarks since the killing on Friday, Mr Netanyahu said: “He wasn’t another terrorist. He was the terrorist.”He said Nasrallah’s killing would help bring displaced Israelis back to their homes in the north and would pressure Hamas to free Israeli hostages held in Gaza.
With the threat of retaliation high, he warned the coming days would bring “significant challenges” and warned Iran against trying to strike.
“There is no place in Iran or in the Middle East that Israel’s long arm cannot reach. And today you know how much that is true,” he said.
Nasrallah’s death marks major escalation in conflict
03:45
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
The leader of Hezbollah has been killed in an Israeli airstrike on a building complex in the Lebanese capital Beirut, marking a significant escalation in the conflict and heightening fears of a wider war.
The strikes ramp up pressure on Iran to retaliate as Nasrallah’s death leaves Tehran’s most powerful proxy without the man who has led the group since 1992.
Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei called on people to stand by Hezbollah “with whatever means they have” and assist them in confronting Israel, warning that “the fate of this region will be determined by the forces of resistance, with Hezbollah at the forefront”.
More here.
European, Arab and Muslim nations launch drive for Palestinian state
03:30
Jane Dalton
Second round of Israeli strikes ‘kill 33’
02:30
Jane Dalton
Thirty-three people were killed and 195 wounded in Israeli strikes on Lebanon on Saturday, the Lebanese health ministry said.
Families fleeing Beirut sleep on beaches and streets
01:45
Jane Dalton
People escaping Friday night’s airstrikes on Beirut joined tens of thousands who have already fled there to escape Israel’s bombardment:
Germany striving for ceasefire, minister says
Sunday 29 September 2024 00:15
Jane Dalton
Germany is continuing efforts to enable a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah group, its foreign minister has said, adding that the situation was extremely dangerous.
“There is a threat that this entire region will slip further into an absolute spiral of violence,” Annalena Baerbock was quoted as saying.
Germany last month called for “de-escalation and regional stability” in the Middle East.
Israel’s military mobilises extra reservists as tensions escalate
Saturday 28 September 2024 22:10
Jane Dalton
Opinion: There’s still a chance to avert war
Saturday 28 September 2024 21:15
Jane Dalton
With the world overwhelmingly opposed to a new all-out war, it could yet be avoided, writes Mary Dejevsky:
US committed to Israel’s defence, says Pentagon
Saturday 28 September 2024 20:20
Jane Dalton
The United States is determined to prevent Iran and Iran-backed groups from exploiting the situation in Lebanon or expanding the conflict, US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin has told Israeli counterpart Yoav Gallant in phone calls.
Mr Austin expressed full US support for Israel’s right to defend itself and made clear that “the United States remains postured to protect US forces and facilities in the region and committed to the defense of Israel”, Pentagon spokesperson Pat Ryder said.
I spoke twice with Israeli Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant yesterday about events in Lebanon. I expressed my full support for Israel’s right to defend itself and its people against Iranian backed terrorist groups. I stressed that the United States is determined to prevent Iran…
— Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III (@SecDef) September 28, 2024
Fire and smoke at Lebanese border
Saturday 28 September 2024 19:30
Jane Dalton
Smoke billows over Khiam, amid cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, as pictured from Marjayoun, near the Lebanese border with Israel:
Armed men fire into air and shut down shops as Hezbollah supporters in shock
Saturday 28 September 2024 18:40
Jane Dalton
Armed men fired shots in the air and shut down shops in parts of Beirut after the death of Hassan Nasrallah.
Hezbollah supporters said they were in a state of shock and disbelief.
“God, I hope it’s not true. It’s a disaster if it’s true,” said Zahraa, a young woman displaced overnight from Hezbollah’s stronghold in the southern suburbs of Beirut.
“He was leading us. He was everything to us. We were under his wings,” she said tearfully.
She said other displaced people around her fainted or began to scream when they received notifications on their phone of Hezbollah’s statement confirming his death.
“We’re still waiting for him to come out on the television at 5pm and tell us that everything is okay, that we can go back home,” Zahraa said.
In some parts of Beirut, armed men went into shops and told owners to shut them down, witnesses said. It was not immediately clear what faction the armed men belonged to.
Search for victims goes on as more strikes expected
Saturday 28 September 2024 17:59
Jane Dalton
Rescue workers in Beirut are still looking for victims under the rubble and more strikes are expected across southern Lebanon overnight, writes Cosette Moljin in the city.
At least six buildings were destroyed in Friday night’s airstrike that killed Hassan Nasrallah.
The site is close to Rasoul al-Aazam Hospital, near the entrance of the Palestinian refugee camp Bourj el-Barajneh, and along a main road that leads from the centre of Beirut to the Beirut national airport.
Killing of Hezbollah chief ‘a measure of justice’, says Biden
Saturday 28 September 2024 17:49
Jane Dalton
US president Joe Biden has said the killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was “a measure of justice” for his many victims.
Mr Biden said: “Hassan Nasrallah and the terrorist group he led, Hezbollah, were responsible for killing hundreds of Americans over a four-decade reign of terror.
“His death from an Israeli airstrike is a measure of justice for his many victims, including thousands of Americans, Israelis, and Lebanese civilians.
“The strike that killed Nasrallah took place in the broader context of the conflict that began with Hamas’s massacre on October 7, 2023.
“Nasrallah, the next day, made the fateful decision to join hands with Hamas and open what he called a “northern front” against Israel.”
The president said the US fully supported Israel’s right to defend itself against Hezbollah, Hamas, the Houthis, and any other Iranian-supported terrorist groups, adding: “Just yesterday, I directed my Secretary of Defense to further enhance the defense posture of US military forces in the Middle East region to deter aggression and reduce the risk of a broader regional war.
“Ultimately, our aim is to de-escalate the ongoing conflicts in both Gaza and Lebanon through diplomatic means.
“In Gaza, we have been pursuing a deal backed by the UN Security Council for a ceasefire and the release of hostages. In Lebanon, we have been negotiating a deal that would return people safely to their homes in Israel and southern Lebanon.
“It is time for these deals to close, for the threats to Israel to be removed, and for the broader Middle East region to gain greater stability.”
Airstrikes killed five relatives, says British woman
Saturday 28 September 2024 17:20
Jane Dalton
A British woman returning to the UK from Lebanon said Israeli airstrikes had killed five members of her family, including a young engineer due to be married in 10 days’ time.
Sana Chamseddin, who clutched her son in her arms in Heathrow Airport, spoke of her guilt at escaping besieged Lebanon and leaving behind loved ones.
Her uncle, his wife and his three daughters, all in their twenties, were killed when their home in the Lebanese city of Tyre was bombed, she told the PA news agency.
Two of the daughters were doctors and one was an engineer who was due to be married in 10 days, said Mrs Chamseddin.
She and her husband, both British citizens, returned to London with their sons, two-month-old Zien and one-year-old Jawad.
She broke down in tears as she said: “On Monday morning we wake up as a big bomb (hit) just beside our house, and we saw on the news that they said another round (of attacks) will start in one hour, so we didn’t take it seriously because we don’t fight - we are normal civilians.
“I was talking with my uncle over WhatsApp, he told me that it’s okay, it’s not going to bomb him, but we lost the connection when they bombed around us.
“When we arrived after 10 hours on the road we found out that he didn’t make it - me and my husband feel very guilty to come here (to England) and (leave) our family in unsafe places.”
Smoke rises from Beirut suburbs after Israeli attacks
Saturday 28 September 2024 16:50
Jane Dalton
Recap:
Israel-Hamas war latest: Smoke rises from Beirut’s southern suburbs after a night of Israeli attacks
Missile intercepted over Israel as air raid sirens sound
Saturday 28 September 2024 16:38
Jane Dalton
Air raid sirens have sounded across central Israel, including at Tel Aviv international airport, shortly after prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu landed from a trip to the US.
The Israeli military said a missile launched from Yemen was intercepted shortly after the sirens were heard. There were no reports of injuries.
It was not immediately known whether the missile strike was aimed at Mr Netanyahu’s flight.
Iran Guard ‘was in charge of protest suppression'
Saturday 28 September 2024 16:20
Jane Dalton
The killing of a prominent general in Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard further ratchets up pressure on Tehran to respond to Israel’s strikes on Lebanon, although the country has signalled in recent months that it wants to negotiate with the West over sanctions crushing its economy.
General Abbas Nilforushan , 58, was killed yesterday in the strike that killed Hassan Nasrallah, the state-owned Tehran Times reported.
The US Treasury had identified Nilforushan as the deputy commander for operations in the Guard. It sanctioned him in 2022 and said he had led an organisation “directly in charge of protest suppression”.
Those sanctions came amid the months-long protests in Iran over the death of Mahsa Amini following her arrest for allegedly not wearing her headscarf or hijab.
Nilforushan also served in Syria, backing President Bashar Assad in his country’s decades-long war that grew out of the 2011 Arab Spring. Like many of his colleagues, he began his military career in the Iran-Iraq war of the 1980s.
In 2020, Iranian state television called him a “comrade” of Gen Qassem Soleimani, the head of its expeditionary Quds Force who was killed in a US drone attack in Baghdad that year.
#BREAKING
— Tehran Times (@TehranTimes79) September 28, 2024
Iranian Brigadier General Abbas Nilforoushan was martyred in the Israeli regime’s strike on Beirut's southern suburb. pic.twitter.com/ku84VxZj9x
More than 1,600 people killed in a year, Lebanon says
Saturday 28 September 2024 15:43
Jane Dalton
Lebanon’s health ministry says the death toll in its country since the day after the Hamas attack on Israel on 7 October last year is 1,640, with 8,408 people wounded.
In the past 12 days, 1,030 have been killed, including 56 women and 87 children, it said, with 6,352 people wounded.
Israel brands Nasrallah murderer of innocent civilians
Saturday 28 September 2024 15:19
Jane Dalton
The head of the Israel Defence Forces has said Hassan Nasrallah “indiscriminately murdered Israeli civilians and aimed to end this war with the destruction of the State of Israel”.
Hezbollah has “murdered innocent people worldwide, hiding weapons under the homes of families, women and children and turning them into human shields”, said Chief of the General Staff Herzi Halevi.
“The IDF is at peak readiness, both in defense and offense, across all fronts, and is prepared for what comes next,” he said.
“We have more missions ahead on all fronts—destroying terrorist organisations and their capabilities, returning our hostages—the mission is constantly before our eyes! As well as the safe return of the residents in the north and south to their homes.”
Israeli military spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said the Hezbollah headquarters in Beirut where Nasrallah was killed was a legitimate military target under international law.
Israel had issued stricter guidelines to civilians by limiting the size of gatherings in areas of central Israel to 1,000 people, he added.
He said: “Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of an evil terrorist organisation; the senior terrorists eliminated with him, and the central headquarters they were in, were legitimate military targets under international law. Nasrallah intentionally built Hezbollah’s central headquarters under residential buildings in Dahiya, Beirut, because Hezbollah intentionally uses Lebanese civilians as human shields. While Hezbollah seeks to maximize civilian harm, Israel seeks to minimize it.”
Recap: Nasrallah and his role in Middle East fighting
Saturday 28 September 2024 14:40
Jane Dalton
Nasrallah’s significance and events that led to his death:
Analysis: Does Hezbollah chief’s death bring Israeli victory closer?
Saturday 28 September 2024 14:20
Jane Dalton
Israel has has yet to show it has a strategy to persuade its enemies to accept defeat, writes Mark Almond:
Beirut strikes 'killed Iranian military chief’
Saturday 28 September 2024 14:05
Jane Dalton
Iran Revolutionary Guards’ deputy commander Abbas Nilforoushan was killed in the Israeli strikes on Beirut on Friday, Iranian media reports.
Iranian state television read the announcement from Hezbollah confirming Nasrallah’s death live, but there was no other immediate comment.
The country’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in a statement read on television: “The resistance movement, headed by Hezbollah, will decide the fate of the region.”
Nasrallah: His power and influence
Saturday 28 September 2024 13:50
Jane Dalton
Idolised by his Lebanese Shi’ite followers and respected by millions of others across the Arab and Islamic world, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah lived largely in hiding in the past years for fear of an Israeli assassination:
UK repeats plea for ceasefire
Saturday 28 September 2024 13:40
Jane Dalton
The UK government has repeated its plea for calm following the death of Hezbollah’s leader.
British officials reiterated the foreign secretary’s message to the UN this week in which he called for a ceasefire and a political solution to the conflict.
David Lammy told the UN Security Council on Wednesday: “A full-blown war is not in the interests of the Israeli or Lebanese people.”
But pleas for a ceasefire from Western leaders including US president Joe Biden have so far proved unsuccessful, with both Israel and Hezbollah vowing to fight on.
Saturday 28 September 2024 13:33
Jane Dalton
Palestinian militant group Hamas said on Saturday it mourned Lebanon’s Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah following his killing in an Israeli airstrike, saying his death would only fuel the fight against Israel.
The group said: “Crimes and assassination by the occupation will only increase the determination and the insistence of the resistance in Palestine and Lebanon to go forward with all their might, bravery and pride on the footsteps of the martyrs... and pursue the path of resistance until victory and the dismissal of the occupation.”
His death marks a heavy blow to Iran, given the major role he has played in the Tehran-backed regional “Axis of Resistance”.
Read more about the Iran-allied groups in the Middle East:
Saturday 28 September 2024 13:20
Andy Gregory
Lebanon health minister says 11 killed and 108 wounded in Israeli strikes on Friday
Saturday 28 September 2024 13:15
Andy Gregory
Lebanon’s health minister has said that 11 people were killed and 108 injured in Israeli strikes on Friday, after the attack which killed Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah levelled six blocks of flats.
Iran in precarious position after assassination of Hezbollah chief, analyst says
Saturday 28 September 2024 12:57
Andy Gregory
Iran is in a precarious position after the killing of Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, having not yet responded either to the death of Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, warned Chatham House analyst Dr Sanam Vakil.
“An attack from Tehran will certainly invite an Israeli response – one that Netanyahu is clearly looking for, said Dr Vakil, who leads the think-tank’s Middle East and North Africa programme.
“Its reputation as the patron of the axis is certainly damaged. Iran’s intelligence continues to be compromised and its positioning in Syria too remains under persistent attack. Furthermore, it is clear that the axis has not proven effective at providing Iran deterrence, defence against Israel or a ceasefire in Gaza.
“Pezeshkian, Iran’s new president also seeks negotiations and sanctions relief. A military response to Nasrallah’s death will, for the time being, close down the path of diplomacy. “
“Despite these risks and calculations, Iran will be looking for some way to turn the tables and save some face. This could result in a coordinated axis response including from Iraq and the Houthis or another direct Iranian strike on Israel itself.
“By maintain pressure or even escalating, Tehran is aware that this will invite further attacks, but it will choose to do so keep pressure on Israel, perhaps return the focus to Gaza and a ceasefire and above all to stop further Israeli attacks.”
Breaking: Hezbollah confirms Nasrallah’s death in Israeli airstrike
Saturday 28 September 2024 12:39
Andy Gregory
Hezbollah has confirmed its leader Hassan Nasrallah was killed in an Israel airstrike.
France says it has information confirming Hezbollah chief is dead
Saturday 28 September 2024 12:25
Andy Gregory
France’s foreign ministry has said that, according to its information, Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah is indeed dead, as claimed by Israel.
“According to the information we have, Hassan Nasrallah, secretary general of Hezbollah, would indeed have died,” the French foreign ministry said in a statement.
EU aviation safety agency advises airlines not to operate in Israel or Lebanon
Saturday 28 September 2024 12:14
Andy Gregory
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency has recommended that airlines do not operate in Lebanese or Israeli airspace for the next month.
The agency said that “an overall intensification of air strikes and degradation in the security situation has been noted, impacting the safety of airspace over Israel and Lebanon”.
It did not cite any one specific event in the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah as a trigger for issuing its “conflict zone information bulletins” for the two countries.
It said the recommendation is valid until 31 October but could be reviewed earlier and adapted or withdrawn.
Hezbollah threat ‘hasn’t gone away’, Israeli military official warns
Saturday 28 September 2024 12:02
Andy Gregory
Israeli military spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani has said that much of Hezbollah’s arsenal remains intact despite intense Israeli strikes over the past week, and that Israel will continue to target the group.
“This isn’t a threat that has gone away,” he said, adding that it is “safe to assume” that Hezbollah will retaliate.
But he said Israel hopes the blow “will change Hezbollah’s actions” and alter the course of the war.
Mr Shoshani said the airstrike targeting Nasrallah was based on years of tracking him, along with “real-time information.” He said Israel confirmed the death through various types of intelligence, though he declined to elaborate.
Strikes in Beirut’s south ongoing, witnesses say
Saturday 28 September 2024 11:49
Andy Gregory
Israeli airstrikes on Beirut's southern suburbs are ongoing, witnesses have told Reuters , saying smoke was visible rising from the affected area.
‘Hezbollah is alive’ banner hung on motorway in Iran
Saturday 28 September 2024 11:41
Andy Gregory
A banner reading “Hezbollah is alive” and featuring a picture of leader Hassan Nasrallah was seen in northern Tehran today, after Israel said it had killed the decades-long chief of the Lebanese militant group.
Iran’s Khamenei says ‘fate of region will be determined by forces of resistance'
Saturday 28 September 2024 11:35
Andy Gregory
Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has urged people “to stand by the people of Lebanon and the proud Hezbollah with whatever means they have and assist them in confronting the ... wicked regime [of Israel]”.
Following Israel’s claim to have killed Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, Iranian state media reported Mr Khamenei as saying: “The fate of this region will be determined by the forces of resistance, with Hezbollah at the forefront.”
His remarks come after two regional officials briefed by Tehran told Reuters that Khamenei had been transferred to a secure location inside the country with heightened security measures in place.
Hassan Nasrallah: Man who led Hezbollah for three decades
Saturday 28 September 2024 11:26
Andy Gregory
Under the leadership of the 64-year-old Nasrallah, Hezbollah has fought wars against Israel and taken part in the conflict in neighbouring Syria, helping tip the balance of power in favour of president Bashar Assad.
A charismatic and shrewd strategist, Hassan Nasrallah reshaped Hezbollah into an arch-enemy of Israel, cementing alliances with Shia religious leaders in Iran and Palestinian militant groups such as Hamas.
Idolised by his Lebanese Shia followers and respected by millions of others across the Arab and Islamic world, Nasrallah holds the title of sayyid, an honorific meant to signify the Shia cleric’s lineage dating back to the Prophet Muhammad, the founder of Islam.
A fiery orator viewed as an extremist in the US and much of the West, he is also considered a pragmatist compared to the firebrand militants who dominated Hezbollah after its founding in 1982, during Lebanon’s civil war.
Despite the power he wields, Nasrallah has lived largely in hiding in the past years for fear of an Israeli assassination.
Lebanon prevents Iranian aircraft from entering airspace after Israeli threat, source claims
Saturday 28 September 2024 11:06
Andy Gregory
Lebanon’s transport ministry told an Iranian aircraft not to enter its airspace after Israel warned air traffic control at Beirut airport that it would use “force” if the plane landed, a source at the ministry told Reuters.
The source said it was not clear what was on the plane, adding: “The priority is people’s lives.”
Israel ‘ready for a wider escalation’, military says
Saturday 28 September 2024 10:55
Andy Gregory
No new instructions have been given to Israeli civilians regarding home front readiness, Israeli Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani told reporters, as current guidelines already put much of the country on high alert.
“Hezbollah has been escalating this for a year ... Iran is obviously behind this, it’s no secret,” the Israeli military spokesperson said. “They’re backing Hamas, they’re backing Hezbollah and other proxies. They even attacked us directly in April.
“So are we ready for a wider escalation? Yes. We’ve been in a wider escalation, a multi-front war, for a year. Our forces are on high alert, our intelligence is up and looking for these types of threats.”
Israel on high alert for broader conflict after killing Hezbollah chief, military official says
Saturday 28 September 2024 10:40
Andy Gregory
Israel is on high alert for a broader conflict after the killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, but hopes his death will cause the Iran-backed group to change course, a military spokesperson has said.
“We hope this will change Hezbollah’s actions,” Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani said in a media briefing after the military claimed it had killed Nasrallah.
But he claimed there was still more to be done to degrade Hezbollah’s capabilities.
“We’ve seen Hezbollah carry out attacks against us for a year. It’s safe to assume that they are going to continue carrying out their attacks against us or try to,” he said.
Lebanon says it is retaliating with attacks in northern Israel
Saturday 28 September 2024 10:37
Andy Gregory
In the wake of Israel’s claims to have killed Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, the militant group said it had targeted Israeli sites – including Rosh Pina in the north – with missiles in response to Israeli attacks on Lebanese cities, villages and civilians.
Who is Hassan Nasrallah?
Saturday 28 September 2024 10:32
Andy Gregory
The Israeli military said on Saturday it had killed Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah in an airstrike on the group’s central headquarters in the southern suburbs of Beirut.
The Iran-backed Hezbollah has yet to issue any statement on the status of Nasrallah, who has led the group for 32 years.
During Nasrallah’s decades in charge, Hezbollah has grown into a regional force that has projected Tehran’s influence across the Middle East.
His death would not only mark an enormous blow to Hezbollah, but also to Iran, whose Revolutionary Guards founded the group in 1982.
Bassem Mroue has more on the Hezbollah leader here:
Iran’s Khamenei ‘moved to a secure location’
Saturday 28 September 2024 10:21
Andy Gregory
Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has been transferred to a secure location inside the country with heightened security measures in place, Reuters has quoted two regional officials briefed by Tehran as saying.
The sources said Iran was in constant contact with Hezbollah and other regional proxy groups to determine the next steps after Israel announced that it had killed the Lebanese militant group’s chief Hassan Nasrallah in a strike on south Beirut on Friday.
Claimed death of Nasrallah ‘not the end of our toolbox’, Israeli military chief says
Saturday 28 September 2024 10:05
Andy Gregory
The Israeli military’s chief of staff, Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi, said the elimination of Nasrallah was “not the end of our toolbox,” indicating that more strikes were planned.
He said that the strike targeting Hezbollah leadership was the result of a long period of preparation.
Contact with Nasrallah ‘lost’ since Friday evening, source close to Hezbollah says
Saturday 28 September 2024 09:57
Andy Gregory
A source close to Hezbollah told Agence France-Presse that contact with the group’s chief Hassan Nasrallah had been “lost” since last evening, after Israel said it had killed him in a strike in southern Beirut.
“Contact with Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah has been lost since Friday evening,” the source said. He did not confirm whether Nasrallah had been killed.
Israel mobilises three reserve battalions ahead of Jewish holidays
Saturday 28 September 2024 09:55
Andy Gregory
Israel’s military said it was mobilising three reserve battalions to bolster the defences of its central command, whose areas of operation include the occupied West Bank.
The decision was made ahead of a period of Jewish holidays when tensions often escalate in Jerusalem and the West Bank, where conflict with Palestinian militants has resurged during Israel’s ongoing war against Hamas in Gaza.
“In accordance with the situational assessment, the IDF [Israel Defence Force] is calling up three reserve battalions for operational activities and to strengthen the defence in the Central Command,” the military said.
Israel maintains barrage of strikes in Lebanon and calls up reservists
Saturday 28 September 2024 09:29
Andy Gregory
Israel has maintained a heavy barrage of airstrikes against Hezbollah this morning and Hezbollah launched dozens of rockets toward Israel – as the country’s military claimed to have killed the group’s leader Hassan Nasrallah.
And the Israeli military said it was mobilising three additional battalions of reserve soldiers, after earlier sending two brigades to northern Israel earlier in the week to train for a possible ground invasion.
Breaking: Israeli military claims to have killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah
Saturday 28 September 2024 09:14