The death of the leader of Hezbollah as a war crime: Lebanese, Israelis and the Middle East
The British Foreign Secretary David Lammy said in a post that he had spoken with the Prime Minister of Lebanon. “We agreed on the need for an immediate ceasefire to bring an end to the bloodshed,” Lammy said, adding that “a diplomatic solution is the only way to restore security and stability for the Lebanese and Israeli people.”
Russia’s foreign ministry issued a statement condemning the killing of Nasrallah, saying it “is fraught with even greater dramatic consequences for Lebanon and the entire Middle East.” Moscow called on Israel to stop hostilities aimed at Lebanon.
Muslims were told to stand by the people of Lebanon and Hezbollah. Masoud Pezeshkian, Iran’s new president, called Nasrallah’s killing a war crime.
In Syria, where Hezbollah has backed Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in the country’s brutal civil war, people in Idlib province celebrated on the streets, Syrian journalist Fared Al Mahlool told NPR. “People are happy to hear it. … Too many people have been displaced, killed, and lost loved ones because of Nasrallah’s support to the Syrian regime. He said that they were involved in the destruction of several cities and the displacement of many people.
Tens of thousands of Lebanese have fled the country’s southern and eastern regions that have borne repeated Israeli strikes in the past week. And many have also been pouring over the border to neighboring Syria, Syrian journalist Danny Makki told NPR, speaking from the capital Damascus.
In the past few days, thousands of reservists have also been called up and deployed to the country’s border with Lebanon, as Hezbollah continues to trade rocket fire with Israeli ground forces using artillery and tanks.
The Israeli military said the Hezbollah leader was killed at his main headquarters underneath a residential building in the southern Beirut suburb of Dahiyeh. Ali Karki, Hezbollah’s acting deputy, and other Hezbollah commanders were killed as they were planning further attacks on Israel.
It was described as a martyr who would remain, despite his death, and still be with us with his spirit, spirit, line and sacred approach.
The president said the death of the leader of Hezbollah, who was a supporter of Iran, was a measure of justice for his many victims.
The Iranian news agency, Mehr, stated that the attack could ignite an even wider conflict in the Middle East. Gen. Abbas Nilforoushan, had also been killed in the strike. Iran has given weapons and missile technology to Hezbollah.
The attack on Hezbollah’s headquarters took place just after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the U.N. General Assembly. An Israeli official, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with protocol, said Netanyahu greenlit the strike before he delivered his address.
Netanyahu said the assassination of Nasrallah, who he described as the architect of the plan toannihilate Israel, was necessary for Israel to achieve its war goals.
The Israeli military ordered limitations on public gatherings in central Israel in a sign that the country was preparing for possible retaliatory strikes by Hezbollah or other Iran-supported militias.
The Israeli Attack on the Hezbollah Organization in the Mediation of the Middle East and the Iran–Palestinian Dealing with the Iraq War
The group attacks against the Americans include the suicide truck bombings in 1983 and 1984 in Lebanon. The death toll of Americans is more than 300.
According to a congressional report published last week, Hezbollah members trained and armed Shia militias that attacked U.S. forces in the Iraq War.
The Lebanese militant group and Israel have been trading attacks since the current conflict in the Middle East began nearly a year ago. Hamas, the Palestinian militant group governing Gaza and is also backed by Iran, carried out an attack on Israel on Oct. 7. Hamas took some 250 hostages and killed around 1,200 Israelis in that attack. More than 40,000 people have been killed in the Gaza Strip over a months-long period.
Hezbollah is able to target Americans to a lesser extent, according to the annual threat assessment put out by U.S. intelligence agencies.
Many US leaders are united in their support of Israel’s actions against Hezbollah, which was found guilty of killing many innocent people.