The body of Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah, has been recovered from the site of an Israeli airstrike in the southern Beirut suburb of Dahieh, multiple reports said.
Medical and security officials reported that his body was found “intact” with no direct wounds, suggesting he died from “blunt trauma” caused by the explosion, according to news agency Reuters. On Sunday, Associated Press journalists saw smoke rising over the rubble in Beirut as residents gathered at the site of destruction.
On Friday, residents heard up to 10 explosions following the Israeli airstrike, which targeted an area larger than a city block, leveling several residential buildings into a mass of concrete and twisted steel. The structures sank into the ground, creating a cleared area bigger than a soccer field.
On Saturday, Israel released videos showing warplanes involved in the strike, specifically eight F-15Is. However, the military did not disclose the type or number of bombs used. The footage depicted the warplanes equipped with munitions consistent with American-made BLU-109 penetrator bombs, each weighing 2,000 pounds, along with a JDAM harness and tail kit.
Hezbollah Members ‘Eliminated’
The Israeli military on Sunday said the strike that killed Hezbollah chief also “eliminated” around two dozen other members of the Lebanese armed group. The dead included, according to the statement, Ibrahim Hussein Jazini and Samir Tawfiq Dib, who the military said were “among Nasrallah’s closest associates” in the Lebanese armed group.
The military in recent days has pounded Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon and also hit the group’s stronghold in southern Beirut with intensified strikes. Hezbollah confirmed Nasrallah’s death on Saturday, and on Sunday it said Ali Karake, the group’s top commander in southern Lebanon, was also killed in the Friday attack.
Lebanon crisis
After back-to-back Israeli airstrikes over the past two weeks, Lebanese health officials report that some 1,000 people have died and over 6,000 have been injured in the country.
Several reports said that the humanitarian crisis has escalated dramatically, with nearly one million people displaced across Lebanon. Nasser Yassin, head of emergency disaster management in Lebanon, noted that the number of displaced individuals surged from 300,000 to almost one million within hours.
In its first statement following Nasrallah’s death, the Lebanese military called for calm during this “dangerous and delicate stage” of conflict. Meanwhile, Iran, who is said to be the patron of Hezbollah, condemned Israel’s actions as a “blatant war crime” and vowed to support Hezbollah in regrouping and restructuring its command.
(With agency inputs)
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