Hizbollah confirms leader Nasrallah's death

The Israeli military warned it was on high alert as Hizbollah confirmed that its leader Hassan Nasrallah had been assassinated in an airstrike in Beirut, amplifying fears of a wider war in the Middle East.

The airstrike was carried out as Hizbollah's leadership met at their headquarters in the southern Beirut suburb of Dahiyeh. Ali Karki, the commander of Hizbollah’s southern front, was among several commanders also killed, the Israeli military claimed.

"Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, Secretary General of Hizbollah, has joined his great, immortal martyr comrades whom he led for about 30 years," Hizbollah said in a statement.

The statement confirmed he was killed with other group members "following the treacherous Zionist strike on the southern suburbs" of Beirut. The statement said Nasrallah "has joined his fellow martyrs.” Hizbollah vowed to "continue the holy war against the enemy and in support of Palestine.”

In central Beirut, AFP journalists heard a passerby screaming, "Oh my God," while women wept in the streets right after Hizbollah announced the news.

Hizbollah's Al Manar TV started airing the Holy Quran verses after the announcement of Nasrallah's death. On the other hand, the Palestinian group Hamas said in a statement it mourned the death of Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah.

Israeli jets pounded Beirut's south and its outskirts throughout the night into Saturday in the most intense attacks on the Hizbollah stronghold since the group and Israel last went to war in 2006.

Israeli jets pounded Beirut's south and its outskirts throughout the night into Saturday in the most intense attacks on the Hizbollah stronghold since the group and Israel last went to war in 2006.

Nasrallah, who led Hizbollah for more than three decades, is by far the most powerful target to be killed by Israel in weeks of intensified fighting with Hizbollah. The Israeli military said it carried out a precise airstrike on Friday night while Hizbollah leadership met at their headquarters in Dahiyeh, south of Beirut.

The Lebanese Health Ministry said six people were killed and 91 injured in the Beirut strikes late on Friday, which leveled six apartment buildings. Ali Karki, the commander of Hizbollah’s Southern Front, and additional Hizbollah commanders were also killed in the attack, the Israeli military said.

Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani, an army spokesperson, said the airstrike was based on years of tracking Nasrallah along with "real time information” that made it viable.

Shoshani declined to say what munitions were used in the strike or provide an estimate on civilian deaths, only saying that Israel takes measures to avoid civilians whenever possible and clears strikes ahead of time with intelligence and legal experts.

The Palestinian group Hamas in a statement issued condolences to its ally, Hizbollah. Nasrallah frequently described launching rockets against northern Israel as a "support front” for Hamas and Palestinians in Gaza.

"History has proven that the resistance... whenever its leaders die as martyrs, will be succeeded on the same path by a generation of leaders who are more valiant, stronger and more determined to continue the confrontation,” the Hamas statement said.

It added that "assassinations will only increase the resistance in Lebanon and Palestine in determination and resolve.”

Airstrikes killed five relatives, says British woman

A British woman returning to the UK from Lebanon said Israeli airstrikes had killed five members of her family, including a young engineer due to be married in 10 days’ time.

Sana Chamseddin, who clutched her son in her arms in Heathrow Airport, spoke of her guilt at escaping besieged Lebanon and leaving behind loved ones.

Her uncle, his wife and his three daughters, all in their twenties, were killed when their home in the Lebanese city of Tyre was bombed, she told the PA news agency.

Two of the daughters were doctors and one was an engineer who was due to be married in 10 days, said Mrs Chamseddin.

She and her husband, both British citizens, returned to London with their sons, two-month-old Zien and one-year-old Jawad.

She broke down in tears as she said: “On Monday morning we wake up as a big bomb (hit) just beside our house, and we saw on the news that they said another round (of attacks) will start in one hour, so we didn’t take it seriously because we don’t fight - we are normal civilians.

“I was talking with my uncle over WhatsApp, he told me that it’s okay, it’s not going to bomb him, but we lost the connection when they bombed around us.

“When we arrived after 10 hours on the road we found out that he didn’t make it - me and my husband feel very guilty to come here (to England) and (leave) our family in unsafe places.”

The Independent / Agencies