After the Israeli military claimed to have killed Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrullah in Friday strikes on Lebanon, the group has confirmed the news, marking the most significant casualty in the ongoing escalations between Israel and the terror group.
Hezbollah's Al-Manar TV started airing Koran verses after the announcement of Nasrallah's death. The group said Nasrallah “has joined his fellow martyrs.” Nasrallah led the militant group for more than three decades. His death could dramatically reshape conflicts across the Middle East.
Who was Hassan Nasrallah?
Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah was born in 1960 to a poor Shiite family of a vegetable seller in Beirut's northern suburb of Sharshabouk. He was later displaced to the southern part of the country. Nasrallah joined the Amal movement and extensively studied theology, before co-founding Hezbollah in 1982. A decade later, Sayyed Abbas Musawi, the then Hezbollah chief was assassinated and Nasrallah assumed the charge of Hezbollah.
Hezbollah was formed by the members of Iran Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) while they were in Lebanon to avert the Israeli invasion. In 2000, after Israel evacuated from Lebanon, Nasrallah acquired prominence within the country and across the world. His messages were started to be broadcasted through radio and satellite TV stations of Hezbollah.
In 2006, Nasrallah managed to reach a standstill arrangement with Israel during a 34-day conflict. Moreover, in 2011, Hezbollah aligned with Bashar Al-Assad during the Syrian civil war when most of the Arab countries were antagonistic to Assad's regime. These incidents solidified his prominence.
The group under Nasrallah played a key role in strengthening Assad's position. Since the start of the Israel-Hamas war, the militant group has come in support of Hamas and confronted Israel with multiple strikes. Amid the exchange of these strikes, Nasrallah finally was neutralised by the Israeli forces
(With inputs from agencies)
