Hezbollah Chief Hassan Nasrallah’s Body Recovered From Bombed Bunker: Report
The body of former Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah has been found and recovered the wreckage of a Israeli air strike in Beirut, news agency Reuters reported citing sources involved in the operation.
While Hezbollah’s statement on Saturday confirming Nasrallah’s death did not say how exactly he was killed nor when his funeral would be, the two sources told Reuters said his body had no direct wounds and that it appeared the cause of death was blunt trauma from the force of the blast.
After months of planning and multiple intelligence inputs, Israel carried out a precise strike at an underground bunker where Nasrallah and several other Hezbollah leaders were conducting a meeting. The bunker was located 60-feet below a bustling street in south Beirut.
The 64-year-old Nasrallah headed arguably the most powerful paramilitary force in the world — also a US-designated terror organisation — that is now left without a clear successor at a critical juncture. It remains to be seen whether his death will be a trigger for an all-out war between the two sides that could potentially drag in Iran and the United States.
The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) have intensified their strikes inside Lebanon in the last few weeks. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claims that the attacks are aimed at destroying terror group Hezbollah which is allegedly planning to strike civilians in Israel.
Just a day after killing Hassan Nasrallah, Israel today also claimed to have killed Nabil Kaouk, another high-ranking Hezbollah official. Kaouk served as Hezbollah’s military commander in south Lebanon from 1995 until 2010.
Israel-Hezbollah Conflict
Hezbollah and Israel have traded near-daily strikes since the Israel-Hamas war started after the Palestinian militant group stormed into Israel on October 7, sparking fears of a war in the Middle East.
The number of those displaced by the conflict from southern Lebanon has more than doubled and now stands at more than 211,000, according to the United Nations.