Explosions reported in Beirut due to Israeli attack on new Hezbollah leader - Axios
Photo: Hezbollah's new leader, Hashem Safieddine, was the target of an Israeli strike on Beirut (wikipedia.org)
Israeli air forces conducted a strike on the Lebanese capital, Beirut, late Wednesday night. The target of the attack may have been the likely new leader of Hezbollah, Hashem Safieddine, who succeeded the previously eliminated Hassan Nasrallah, according to Axios.
According to three Israeli officials in a conversation with an American publication, the IDF airstrike was a targeted assault against the head of Hezbollah's executive committee, al-Din.
He is a leading figure in this paramilitary Islamist organization and party, and he is a cousin of Nasrallah, whose elimination as a result of the Beirut strike became known on September 28.
An Israeli official told Axios that Hashem Safieddine was in a bunker deep underground during the current strike. It remains unclear whether he was killed in the attack.
Additionally, Lebanese press reports indicate that the Israeli strike was much more prominent in scale than the one that resulted in Nasrallah's death in Beirut last week.
Currently, there are no precise details regarding the number of casualties from the airstrike on the Lebanese capital.
Furthermore, videos of the strike in Beirut have been shared online.
#BREAKING: reports indicating #Israel has targeted #Hezbollah executive council head Hashem Safieddine and a leading candidate to replace Hassan Nasrallah tonight in an airstrike. pic.twitter.com/KSDoPrszIp
— Jason Brodsky (@JasonMBrodsky) October 3, 2024
Earlier reports indicated that on September 28, the IDF announced the elimination of Nasrallah, who had led Hezbollah for 32 years. Subsequently, Hezbollah confirmed the death of its leader.
The following day, Arab media reported the election of a new leader within Hezbollah, Hashem Safieddine.
It is also important to note that since October 1, Israel has launched a military operation on Lebanese territory, aiming to destroy Hezbollah's infrastructure.
For more information on why Israel is conducting this military operation in Lebanon and its objectives, read RBC-Ukraine's article.
