September 27, 2024 (11:23 PM)
Phil Johnson, Ph.D.
Hassan Nasrallah, the Secretary General of Hezbollah is reported to be dead. In an unprecedented airstrike earlier today, Israel hit Hezbollah’s headquarters in Beirut, Lebanon where the leader of the world’s largest terrorist organization was presumed to be. The airstrike happened at 5:38 PM, Israel time shortly after Prime Minister, Netanyahu’s speech at the United Nations in New York.
An Israeli official told the Jerusalem Post that it was, “hard to believe he (Nasrallah) got out of it alive.”
As of now, there is no official confirmation from Hezbollah or Iran that Nasrallah is dead. But even if he were to have survived the attack, the organization of Hezbollah is in shatters following the pager attack and Israel’s targeted strikes on Hezbollah’s command posts and assassination of its leaders.
Should it be confirmed that Nasrallah has been assassinated, you can expect swift retaliation from Hezbollah, from Iran, from the Houthis in Yemen and even from the Palestinians in the West Bank. Israel’s enemies cannot let this attack go unanswered. But regardless, this appears, at least in the foreseeable future, to be a game changer for Israel. She has rid herself of a significant thorn in her side and significantly damaged the capabilities of Hezbollah, the “Party of God.”
After almost a year of war, Israel’s goals remain the same: To get the hostages from Gaza returned and to push Hezbollah in Lebanon far enough to the north to allow the Israelis who live in northern Israel to go back home again.
While today’s airstrikes were a bold and extraordinary, the story is far from over. But for today, Israel’s military and leaders have a lot for be proud of – and thankful for.
The Global Nexter 