Hezbollah fighters say they have lost contact with its top commander, Hashem Safideen, who is considered the successor to slain Hezbollah leader Nasrallah. A senior Hezbollah representative told the AFP news agency on Saturday that contact with Safideen had been “lost” since Israel launched an airstrike south of Beirut on Friday night. Hizbullah’s intelligence chief, Hajj Mortada, also accompanied Safideen, Hizbullah sources said.
“Another serious and significant setback”
Nader Hashemi, a professor of Middle East studies at Georgetown University, told Al-Jazeera that the loss of contact was “another serious and significant setback” for Hezbollah. The purpose is to prepare supporters with such news to confirm his death.
After Hezbollah leader Nasrallah was killed in an Israeli airstrike last week, Safideen was seen as a possible successor. American news website “Axios” and Israeli portal “Ynet” reported on Friday, citing Israeli government officials, that the Israeli attacks were directed against Safideen in south Beirut. The Israeli army has not confirmed these reports.
Israel’s military chief Halevi defended the actions in Lebanon: “We must continue to put pressure on Hezbollah and inflict more continuous damage on the enemy, without concessions and without rest for the organization.” Israeli President Herzog, however, announced in a televised address that Israel would not give up on peace efforts with its neighbors.
Hezbollah command center shelled
Meanwhile, fighting continued in Lebanon between Israel and pro-Iranian Hezbollah. Its air force said it used information from military intelligence to shell a Hezbollah command center inside a mosque bordering the Salah Kantur hospital in southern Lebanon on Saturday night.
Israeli ground forces also destroyed Hezbollah mines and weapons depots. They were said to be in densely built-up areas with bomb traps. Ammunition is often hidden in residential buildings.
For the first time since the start of the offensive in Lebanon, the Israeli army also attacked the northern part of the country. According to Lebanese reports, a target near the city of Tripoli was hit. A Hamas leader and three family members were killed.
Shiite militias, for their part, said they fired Fadi-1 rockets at an Israeli military base in Ramat David, near the northern Israeli coastal city of Haifa. It fired several rockets at the northern Israeli city of Safed.
Iran Foreign Minister Arakhsi in Damascus: “Cease fire is the most urgent issue”
Meanwhile, Iran’s Foreign Minister Araksi left for Syria after completing a trip to Lebanon. In the capital, Damascus, Arachi stressed that the most pressing issue at the moment was the ceasefire in Lebanon and the Gaza Strip. “We hope that efforts in this regard will bear fruit,” Arachi said, according to state media. He singled out Israel as the main obstacle and called on the international community to stand up against Israeli “war crimes” to make peace possible. Iran is considered the most important ally of the militant Islamist Hezbollah group.
Macron has called for an end to arms sales to Israel
French President Macron called for an end to arms supplies to Israel. Macron said on “France Inter” radio that the priority was to return to a political settlement and stop the supply of weapons to the fighting in the Gaza Strip. France offers nothing. The French president lamented that despite all diplomatic efforts to reach a ceasefire, especially with Israel, nothing has moved in the conflict.
This message was sent on October 5, 2024 in the Deutschlandfunk program.
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