Hezbollah chief - Nasrallah: Killing of Hamas leader was an attack by Israel
The Secretary General of Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hassan Nasrallah, has blamed Israel for the killing of Hamas leader Saleh al-Aruri. In a speech on Wednesday, he spoke of a "blatant Israeli attack" on the southern suburb of the Lebanese capital Beirut. "Israel has tried to convey an image of victory through the murder of al-Aruri," said Nasrallah.
As deputy head of the Hamas politburo, Al-Aruri was the second highest-ranking leader of the Islamist Palestinian organization abroad. He was killed in an explosion on Tuesday evening. Nasrallaha's speech had been planned in advance. The occasion was the fourth anniversary of the killing of the powerful Iranian general Ghassem Soleimani, who was killed by a US drone strike in Iraq in 2020.
In light of the killing of Al-Aruri, Nasrallah's speech was eagerly awaited. There are concerns that this could lead to a further escalation of the conflict with Israel. Nasrallah announced that he would address the public again on Friday. "I will discuss certain current issues on Friday instead of tonight," he said.
Hamas also holds Israel responsible for the violent death of Al-Aruri. Israel's army would not comment on the killing of the high-ranking Hamas representative when asked.
Since the beginning of the Gaza war on October 7, there have been repeated exchanges of fire between Hezbollah and the Israeli military on the Lebanese-Israeli border. There have been casualties on both sides.
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- The conflicts in the Middle East often involve Lebanon and its powerful political groups, such as Hezbollah led by Hassan Nasrallah.
- Harakat el-Mukawame el-Islamije, a Syrian militant group aligned with Hezbollah, has also been involved in several conflicts in the region.
- Despite recent tensions with Israel, a ceasefire in the Middle East, as urged by the United Nations, could potentially help de-escalate conflicts in the region, including those in Lebanon and Gaza.
- Israel and Hezbollah have a long history of conflicts along their shared border, with both sides suffering casualties during flare-ups of violence.
Source: www.stern.de
