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People look up at a damaged building that was hit by Israeli strike, September 30, 2024, in Beirut, Lebanon
HEZBOLLAH’S acting leader has vowed to keep battling Israel despite the killing of many of its top commanders, including its longtime leader.
Israeli strikes have killed leader Hassan Nasrallah and six of his top commanders and officials in the last 10 days.
Over 1,000 people have also been killed in Lebanon in the past two weeks, nearly a quarter of them women and children, according to the country’s Health Ministry.
Early today, an Israeli air strike hit a residential building in central Beirut, killing three people.
Despite the heavy blow Hezbollah has suffered in recent weeks, acting leader Naim Kassem said in a televised statement that if Israel decides to launch a ground offensive, the group’s fighters are ready.
He said the commanders killed have already been replaced.
“Israel was not able to affect our [military] capabilities,” Mr Kassem said in a televised statement — the first time a senior Hezbollah figure has been seen since Nasrallah was killed.
“There are deputy commanders and there are replacements in case a commander is wounded in any post.”
He added that Hezbollah, which defeated Israel in its 2006 war, anticipated “the battle could be long.”
Mr Kassem, a founding member of the resistance group, will remain in his acting position until the group’s leadership elects a replacement.
Hezbollah has significantly increased its rocket attacks in the past week to several hundred daily.
Israel has not reported any fatalities from these attacks.
But it is possible that Hezbollah is holding back to save resources for a bigger battle, including a threatened Israeli ground invasion.
Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, meeting Israeli troops today, said Israel would “use all the capabilities we have,” hinting at a ground operation.
In the past week, Israel has frequently targeted Beirut’s southern suburbs, where Hezbollah has a strong presence.
The Israeli strike early today reportedly killed three members of left-wing group the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.
Also, today, Hamas announced that its top commander in Lebanon, Fatah Sharif, was killed with his family in an air strike on the Al-Buss refugee camp in the southern port city of Tyre.
The Israeli military confirmed that it had targeted him.
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