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.
“We reached [Hassan] Nasrallah, his replacement, and most of Hezbollah’s leadership. We will know how to reach anyone who threatens the security of Israel’s citizens,” Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Chief of Staff Lt Gen Herzi Halevi said in remarks provided by the military, according to The Times of Israel.
A source close to Hezbollah told AFP in early October that Safieddine was considered the “most likely” candidate for the party’s leadership.
Israel’s military also announced that it killed three Hezbollah commanders and around 70 fighters in southern Lebanon over the past 48 hours, following the confirmation of the death of Safieddine.
The IDF said they are conducting targeted raids against Hezbollah’s infrastructure.
At least 1.2 million Lebanese people have been displaced so far and over 2,500 deaths have been recorded, including 63 in the last day alone.
The conflict between Hezbollah and Israel began after Hezbollah fired rockets into Israel on 8 October 2023 in “solidarity” with Hamas’s attack on Israel the day before. Hostilities have sharply intensified since Israel launched “Operation Northern Arrows” against Hezbollah in Lebanon on 23 September.
Last week, Israel targeted and killed Yahya Sinwar, the leader of Hamas, in Gaza.
On Monday night, Israeli strikes on Greater Beirut killed 18 people, including four children and injured 60 in a strike in Dahiyeh.
US secretary of state Antony Blinken urged Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu to use the recent killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar to secure the release of hostages from the 7 October Hamas attack and to consider ending the war in Gaza.
During his 11th visit to the Middle East since the conflict escalated, Mr Blinken also aimed to address rising tensions in Lebanon.
Mr Netanyahu indicated that Sinwar’s death might aid in the hostages’ return and help achieve war objectives. However, there was no mention of a ceasefire, despite the severe devastation in Gaza, where military capabilities have diminished and most of the 2.3 million residents have been displaced.
Additional reporting by agencies.