2024 Hezbollah headquarters strike

Hezbollah headquarters strike
Part of the September 2024 Lebanon strikes
An IAF F-15I loaded with guided bombs as it is taking-off for the airstrike on 27 September 2024
TypeAirstrike
Location
Haret Hreik, Dahieh, Lebanon

33°51′5″N 35°30′14″E / 33.85139°N 35.50389°E / 33.85139; 35.50389
TargetHassan Nasrallah
Date27 September 2024
Executed by Israeli Air Force
Casualties33+ (including Nasrallah) killed
195+ injured
Dahieh is located in Lebanon
Dahieh
Dahieh
Location within Lebanon

On 27 September 2024, Hassan Nasrallah, the secretary-general of Hezbollah, was assassinated in an Israeli airstrike in Beirut.[1][2] The strike took place while Hezbollah leaders were meeting at a headquarters located 60 feet (18 m) underground beneath residential buildings in Haret Hreik in the Dahieh suburb to the south of Beirut.[2][3] Conducted by the Israeli Air Force using F-15I fighters,[4] the operation involved dropping more than 80 bombs,[5] including US-made 2,000-pound (910 kg) bunker buster bombs, destroying the underground headquarters as well as nearby buildings.[6][7] The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) codenamed the operation "New Order" (Hebrew: סדר חדש, romanized: Seder Hadash).

On 28 September 2024, the IDF announced his death;[8][9] his body was recovered from the rubble two days after the strike.[10] The attack resulted in at least 33 fatalities and more than 195 injuries, including civilians.[11][3] Ali Karaki, the commander of Hezbollah's Southern Front, was also killed in the attack, along with other senior commanders.[2] Abbas Nilforoushan, deputy commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and commander of the Quds Force in Lebanon, was also killed.[12]

Before the attack, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the United Nations (UN), saying Israel was dedicated to peace and its ongoing campaign against Hezbollah.[7][13][14] Lebanese prime minister Najib Mikati condemned this and prior Israeli attacks on Lebanon,[15][16] denouncing the ongoing Israeli attacks as "a war of extermination."[17] Earlier in September, some of Hezbollah's most severe setbacks occurred,[18][19][20] including the 17 and 18 September explosions of its handheld communication devices and the 20 September assassination of Ibrahim Aqil, commander of the elite Redwan Force.[21][22] Since 23 September 2024, when Israel began its airstrikes on Lebanon, Israeli attacks have killed over 700 people,[23] injured more than 5,000,[24][25][26] and displaced hundreds of thousands of Lebanese civilians.[27]

  1. ^ "Hezbollah Confirms Leader Nasrallah's Death". Barron's. AFP. Retrieved 28 September 2024.
  2. ^ a b c "Hezbollah confirms its leader Hassan Nasrallah was killed in an Israeli airstrike". AP News. 28 September 2024. Archived from the original on 28 September 2024. Retrieved 28 September 2024.
  3. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference Haaretz was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Epstein, Jake. "Israel appeared to use US-made 2,000-pound bombs in the strike that killed Hezbollah's chief". Business Insider. Retrieved 30 September 2024.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference Israel Assassin was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ "Israeli airstrikes rock Beirut, target Hezbollah command". Reuters. 27 September 2024. Retrieved 27 September 2024.
  7. ^ a b "Israel says it struck Hezbollah's headquarters as huge explosions rocked Beirut". AP News. 27 September 2024. Archived from the original on 27 September 2024. Retrieved 27 September 2024.
  8. ^ IDF Spokesperson's Unit (28 September 2024). "Press Briefing by IDF Spokesperson RAdm. Daniel Hagari - September 28, 2024". IDF. Archived from the original on 28 September 2024. Retrieved 28 September 2024.
  9. ^ Pasko, Simcha (28 September 2024). "IDF Confirms Death of Hezbollah Chief Nasrallah in Beirut Strike". The Media Line. Archived from the original on 28 September 2024. Retrieved 28 September 2024.
  10. ^ "Nasrallah's body recovered from rubble two days after assassination". Ynetnews. 29 September 2024. Retrieved 29 September 2024.
  11. ^ Lau, Chris; Nicholls, Catherine; Tanno, Sophie; Vogt, Adrienne; Powell, Tori B.; Meyer, Matt; Iyer, Kaanita; Raine, Andrew (28 September 2024). "Israel Says It Targeted Hezbollah Leader in Strikes on Beirut: Live Updates". CNN. Archived from the original on 28 September 2024. Retrieved 28 September 2024.
  12. ^ "IRGC deputy commander killed in Israeli strikes on Beirut – Iranian media". The Jerusalem Post. 28 September 2024. Archived from the original on 28 September 2024. Retrieved 28 September 2024.
  13. ^ "In blistering UN speech, Netanyahu says Israel seeks peace but will fight until victory". Times of Israel. 27 September 2024. Archived from the original on 29 September 2024. Retrieved 29 September 2024.
  14. ^ "Israel-Lebanon latest: Explosions in Beirut after Netanyahu vows to keep fighting Hezbollah". BBC News. Archived from the original on 26 September 2024. Retrieved 27 September 2024.
  15. ^ "Lebanese Prime Minister says Israel's attack on southern Beirut proves it 'does not care' about international calls for a cease-fire". NBC News. 28 September 2024. Retrieved 28 September 2024.
  16. ^ Harvey, Lex; Tanno, Sophie; Sangal, Aditi; John, Tara; Powell, Tori B. (27 September 2024). "Israel carries out deadly strikes on Lebanon's capital". CNN. Retrieved 28 September 2024.
  17. ^ "Lebanon PM denounces Israel's 'destructive plan' amid IDF strikes on Hezbollah". Times of Israel. 23 September 2024. Retrieved 29 September 2024.
  18. ^ Byman, Daniel (24 September 2024). "The Beeper Balance Sheet". Foreign Policy. Archived from the original on 23 September 2024. Retrieved 24 September 2024.
  19. ^ "Arab states watch Hezbollah deterrence weakened, Israeli deterrence restored – analysis". The Jerusalem Post. 20 September 2024. Archived from the original on 24 September 2024. Retrieved 24 September 2024.
  20. ^ "Cold military logic takes over in Israel-Hezbollah conflict". www.bbc.com. Archived from the original on 23 September 2024. Retrieved 24 September 2024.
  21. ^ "Israeli strikes kill 492 in Lebanon's deadliest day of conflict since 2006". AP News. 23 September 2024. Archived from the original on 24 September 2024. Retrieved 24 September 2024.
  22. ^ "Hezbollah commander killed in Israeli airstrike was top military official on US wanted list". AP News. 20 September 2024. Retrieved 30 September 2024.
  23. ^ Rowlands, Lyndal; McCready, Alastair; Quillen, Stephen; Mohamed, Edna; Siddiqui, Usaid; Najjar, Farah. "Israel attacks Lebanon updates: Unequivocal US support for Israel's wars". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 29 September 2024.
  24. ^ "Death toll nears 500 in Israeli strikes on Lebanon, health ministry says". France 24. 23 September 2024. Archived from the original on 23 September 2024. Retrieved 29 September 2024.
  25. ^ Rowlands, Lyndal; McCready, Alastair; Quillen, Stephen; Mohamed, Edna; Siddiqui, Usaid; Najjar, Farah. "Israel attacks Lebanon updates: Unequivocal US support for Israel's wars". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 29 September 2024.
  26. ^ "Israel-Hezbollah latest: Israel launches fresh strikes on Lebanon; next potential Hezbollah leader said to have survived". Sky News. Archived from the original on 23 September 2024. Retrieved 29 September 2024.
  27. ^ "'We're already at war', Lebanese minister says - as he warns of 'catastrophic' number of casualties from Israeli airstrikes". Sky News. Archived from the original on 26 September 2024. Retrieved 29 September 2024.