Barran Press
On September 27, 2024, a senior Iranian security official told Reuters that Tehran is verifying the status of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah following an Israeli airstrike that targeted him in Beirut's southern suburbs. Meanwhile, Iran's Tasnim news agency reported that Nasrallah is "safe."
A source close to Hezbollah confirmed to AFP that Nasrallah is indeed "fine" after the Israeli strikes, which leveled six buildings in the southern suburb of Beirut. The source, speaking on condition of anonymity, revealed that these structures were completely destroyed within Hezbollah's security zone.
Reuters cited another source close to Hezbollah stating that Nasrallah is "alive." However, Israeli Channel 12 reported that assessments in Israel suggest Nasrallah may have been "killed" in the airstrikes targeting the southern suburb. The channel displayed a headline stating, "Assessment in Israel: Nasrallah has been eliminated." Channel 13, on the other hand, took a more cautious stance, indicating, "Cautious optimism in Israel: The strike on Nasrallah was successful," according to the Times of Israel.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cut short his visit to the United States, where he was attending the United Nations General Assembly, following the airstrike on Nasrallah's location in Beirut.
The Lebanese Health Ministry reported that two people were killed and 76 others injured in the Israeli airstrikes on the southern suburb on Friday.
A Pentagon spokesperson stated that the United States had not received prior notice of the Israeli strike in Beirut. U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin spoke with his Israeli counterpart while the operation was ongoing.
The successive strikes created massive craters up to five meters wide in the Haret Hreik area, according to an AFP photographer who witnessed ambulances rushing in various directions while flames continued to burn.
Prior to the strikes, the Israeli military announced it had "carried out a precise strike on the central headquarters of the terrorist organization Hezbollah in the suburb."
Local media aired live footage showing plumes of smoke rising from multiple locations in the southern suburb.