Israel confirmed on Tuesday that it had killed Hashem Safieddine, the heir apparent to the late Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah, in an attack on the Iran-backed Lebanese militant group last month.
For the first time, the military confirmed Safieddine’s death, stating that a strike in the southern suburbs of Beirut three weeks ago killed him. Israel said earlier this month that he was likely dead.
Israel’s claim of Safieddine’s death elicited no immediate response from Hezbollah.
We have reached Nasrallah, his successor, and the majority of Hezbollah’s top brass. “We will apprehend anyone who poses a threat to the safety of the State of Israel’s civilian population,” declared Israeli army chief Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi.
After a year of border clashes with Hezbollah, the most highly armed of Iran’s proxy forces in the Middle East, Israel has been increasingly attacking Lebanon. Although the group has been supporting Palestinian militants in their fight against Israel in Gaza, it is still in shock over the recent wave of Israeli airstrikes that killed several of its top commanders.
Nasrallah’s relative Safieddine held appointments to both the executive council, which oversaw Hezbollah’s financial and administrative affairs, and the Jihad Council, which oversaw its military operations.
Speaking on behalf of Hezbollah in the final year of the conflict with Israel, Safieddine took center stage at funerals and other gatherings that Nasrallah had long been unable to attend due to security concerns.
Despite killing a number of Hamas and Hezbollah leaders and losing Nasrallah, its influential secretary-general, in an airstrike on September 27, Israel has not backed down in its campaigns in Gaza and Lebanon thus far.
According to diplomats, Israel wants to secure a solid position before a new US government takes office, following the election of former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris on November 5.
