Major retaliation expected after Israel kills Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah plus Iranian senior Revolutionary Guard commander
By ethanh // 2024-10-01
 
Things are escalating further in the Middle East after Israel successfully ended the life of Hassan Nasrallah, the top dog in charge of Hezbollah, in an air strike in Beirut over the weekend. Hezbollah says it will keep fighting Israel even though its leader has "joined his fellow martyrs." "The leadership of Hezbollah pledges ... to continue its jihad in confronting the enemy, supporting Gaza and Palestine, and defending Lebanon and its steadfast and honorable people," Hezbollah further said in a statement. Iran is joining the chorus of rage by pledging to respond to the attack with "all regional resistance forces" delivering a "strong" response to the "rabid dog" of Israel, which is forging on in trying to complete its mission in the Middle East. The possibility of all-out war is now closer than ever after Israeli fighter jets dropped about 10 "bunker-busting bombs" on various residential buildings in the southern suburbs of Lebanon's capitol city, an area colloquially known as Dahiyeh. Israel Defense Forces (IDF) immediately confirmed responsibility for the strikes, including the one on Nasrallah. "Hassan Nasrallah will no longer be able to terrorise the world," the Israeli army tweeted over the weekend. (Related: Iran is promising to unleash an "obliterating war" if Israel attacks Lebanon with a ground invasion, which appears to be happening as you read this.)

Who will succeed Nasrallah?

A few other commanders were also killed in the strikes, confirmed Avichay Adraee, the Arabic spokesman of the IDF. "The message is clear: we will reach everyone who threatens the citizens of Israel in the north, in the south, and on more distant fronts," Adraee said. In honor of Nasrallah, Hezbollah issued a eulogy type of statement reflecting the Muslim beliefs held by the commander and his army. "His eminence, the master of resistance, the righteous servant, has passed away to be with his lord who is pleased with him as a great martyr," the statement reads. "The leadership of Hezbollah pledges ... to continue its jihad in confronting the enemy [Israel], supporting Gaza and Palestine and defending Lebanon and its steadfast and honourable people." It is unclear at this point in time who Nasrallah's successor will be. The world is also waiting to see how Lebanon and Iran respond to the Israeli attack since there have been many "red lines" crossed over the past several weeks. Analysts speculated that perhaps Nasrallah's heir, Hashem Safieddine, who survived the attack, will assume the post of his now-deceased uncle. Safieddine currently oversees Hezbollah's political affairs unit and sits on the group's Jihad Council. Back in 2017, the U.S. State Department designated Safieddine a terrorist. This past June, Safieddine beat his chest about how there will soon be a big escalation, this after another Hezbollah commander died at the hands of Israel. Ali Khamenei, Iran's supreme leader, is urging all Muslims around the world to stand with the people of Lebanon and assist Hezbollah in confronting Israel's "wicked regime." Without mentioning Nasrallah by name, Khamenei in a statement posted to his website condemned the killing of "the defenceless people of Lebanon," adding that "it proved the short-sightedness and foolish policies of the leaders" of Israel. "[Israeli] criminals must know that they are far too small to cause any significant damage on the strongholds of Hezbollah in Lebanon," Khamenei further said. "All the resistance forces in the region support and stand alongside Hezbollah." Khamenei wants all Muslims everywhere to support his country in "confronting the usurping and oppressive regime" of Israel. "The fate of this region will be determined by the forces of resistance, with Hezbollah at the forefront," he declared. The latest news about the dire situation in the Middle East can be found at Chaos.news. Sources for this article include: DailyMail.co.uk MiddleEastEye.net NaturalNews.com