Hezbollah confirms its top leader was killed after Israeli airstrikes [View all]

Source: NPR

Updated September 28, 20248:07 AM ET


Israel's military says several airstrikes Friday in central Beirut have killed the long-time leader of the Hezbollah militant group, Hassan Nasrallah, in what represents another dramatic new development in a conflict that has metastasized across the Middle East region since last October.

In a statement Saturday, Hezbollah confirmed the death of Nasrallah and offered condolences for others killed with him “following the treacherous Zionist raid on the southern suburb.” In a post on the social media platform X, the Israeli military wrote that Nasrallah would "no longer be able to terrorize the world," prompting loud music to ring out across Tel Aviv in celebration of his death.

Nasrallah only very rarely made public appearances during his 32-year tenure atop a group that several nations, including the United States, have labeled a terrorist organization.

The airstrikes Friday had leveled several large residential buildings in southern Beirut, which Israeli officials had almost immediately labeled the headquarters of Hezbollah in statements they issued even as the smoke and debris clouds from the explosion rose above the city.

Read more: https://www.npr.org/2024/09/28/g-s1-25279/israels-military-says-it-killed-hezbollah-leader