Zainab Nasrallah, the daughter of top Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, was reportedly killed in an Israeli airstrike targeting Hezbollah strongholds in Lebanon's southern Beirut on Friday, Channel 12 claimed. However, there has been no official confirmation from Israel, Hezbollah, or Lebanese authorities regarding her death.
If confirmed, Zainab Nasrallah's death could carry significant symbolic weight for Hezbollah and potentially affect the group's response to the ongoing conflict with Israel.
Zainab Nasrallah was recognised for her outspoken support of Hezbollah and her family’s sacrifices, The Jerusalem Post reported. She had previously addressed the death of her brother, Hadi, who was killed by Israeli forces in 1997.
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Israeli strikes target Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut
The Israeli military announced that it targeted Hezbollah's headquarters in Beirut on Friday, resulting in a series of powerful explosions that aimed at the militant group's leader and destroyed several high-rise apartment buildings, Associated Press (AP) reported.
Lebanon’s health ministry said that there were at least six deaths and 91 injuries from the blasts, which marked the largest explosion in the Lebanese capital in the past year and raised concerns that the escalating conflict could edge closer to full-scale war.
{{/usCountry}}Lebanon’s health ministry said that there were at least six deaths and 91 injuries from the blasts, which marked the largest explosion in the Lebanese capital in the past year and raised concerns that the escalating conflict could edge closer to full-scale war.
{{/usCountry}}According to two sources familiar with the situation quoted by AP, including one US official who spoke on condition of anonymity, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was the intended target of the strikes. The Israeli army refrained from commenting on the specific targets, and it remains unclear whether Nasrallah was present at the site; Hezbollah has not provided any comments on the matter.
The death toll is expected to rise significantly as rescue teams search through the rubble of six destroyed buildings. Following the initial explosion, Israel carried out a series of strikes on additional areas in the southern suburbs.
Hassan Nasrallah has been in hiding for years, rarely making public appearances. While he frequently delivers speeches, he does so via video from undisclosed locations.
The site targeted on Friday evening had not been publicly identified as Hezbollah’s main headquarters, but it is situated within the group’s “security quarters” a heavily fortified area of Haret Hreik that houses its offices and several nearby hospitals.
Hours after the strike, Hezbollah had yet to release any statement regarding the incident. Instead, it declared that it had fired a barrage of rockets at the Israeli city of Safed, saying it was “in defence of Lebanon and its people, and in response to the barbaric Israeli violation of cities, villages and civilians.”