Lebanese militant group Hezbollah vowed to launch a new phase of fighting against invading Israeli troops on Friday, a day after Israel said its forces in the Palestinian enclave of Gaza had killed Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, the main architect of the last year’s brutal attack on Israel that sparked the current conflict
The killing of Sinwar in what appeared to be a chance frontline encounter with Israeli troops offers a potential window to change the dynamics in the Gaza conflict even as Israel continues its offensive against Hezbollah along its northern border with Lebanon and continues its aerial bombardments in other areas of Lebanon. . Both Hamas and Hezbollah are backed by Iran, which praised Sinwar as a martyr who can inspire others to challenge Israel.
Israel is committed to politically destroying Hamas in Gaza, and killing Sinwar was a top military priority.
Hamas has not yet commented directly on the Israeli announcement, but photographs apparently taken by Israeli troops at the scene showed the body of a man who appeared to be Sinwar half buried in the rubble with an open wound on his head.
A statement issued by one of Hamas’s political leaders abroad on Friday appeared to be a reference to Sinwar’s death and said that Israel is wrong if it “believes that killing our leaders means the end of our movement and the people’s struggle.” Palestinian”.
Bassem Naim, a member of Hamas’s political bureau who usually resides in Qatar, said that the organization’s previous leaders had also been killed and that “Hamas became increasingly stronger and more popular, and these leaders became iconic.” so that future generations continue the journey towards a free Palestine.”
He added that it is “painful and distressing to lose dear people, especially extraordinary leaders,” but that the Palestinian militant group is confident that it will “eventually emerge victorious.”
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However, when asked if the statement was a confirmation of Sinwar’s death, Naim said it was not.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a speech announcing the assassination Thursday night that “our war is not over yet.” But many, from the governments of Israel’s allies to the exhausted residents of Gaza, expressed hope that Sinwar’s death would pave the way for an end to the war.
Iran’s mission to the United Nations issued a statement honoring Sinwar, emphasizing that he died on the battlefield and not in hiding, unlike Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, who was hanged in 2006.
“When American forces dragged a disheveled Saddam Hussein out of an underground hole, he begged them not to kill him despite being armed. “Those who regarded Saddam as their model of resistance finally collapsed,” the statement said. “However, when Muslims admire martyr Sinwar standing on the battlefield, in combat attire and in the open, not in a hiding place, facing the enemy, the spirit of resistance will strengthen.”
More than a million people on both sides died during the brutal war between Iran and Iraq in the 1980s, which began when Hussein launched an invasion of Iran.
In Lebanon, Hezbollah issued a statement early Friday saying its fighters have used new types of precision-guided missiles and explosive drones against Israel for the first time in recent days.
The statement appeared to refer to an explosives-laden drone that evaded Israel’s multi-layered air defense system and crashed into a mess hall at a military training camp deep inside Israel last Sunday night, killing four soldiers. and injuring dozens.
The group also announced earlier this week that it fired a new type of missile called Qader 2 toward the Tel Aviv suburbs.
Hezbollah said its fighters were working according to “pre-prepared plans” to fight invading Israeli troops in several parts of southern Lebanon. He also announced several missile and artillery attacks against Israeli forces operating in villages in the border area of southern Lebanon overnight and on Friday morning.
In one case, the group said it fired a strong barrage of missiles at Israeli soldiers who were trying to evacuate those wounded in an earlier attack. The group also said it had fired “large volleys of missiles” at a military barracks in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights and in the Zvulun area north of Haifa.
Earlier this week, Hezbollah’s interim leader Naim Kassem warned that the group will continue attacking broader areas of Israel unless a ceasefire is implemented in Lebanon.
As Israel battled militants in Lebanon and Gaza, its military said Friday that its forces had killed two militants who crossed into Israeli territory south of the Dead Sea from neighboring Jordan.
These types of infiltrations are relatively rare, especially as Israel has stepped up border security since the Hamas attack in October 2023.
On October 7, 2023, Hamas-led militants punched holes in Israel’s security fence and breached it, killing about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and kidnapping another 250. Israel’s offensive in Gaza has killed more than 42,000 Palestinians, according to local health authorities. that do not distinguish combatants from civilians. The conflict has destroyed vast areas of Gaza and displaced around 90% of its population of 2.3 million people.
Abby Sewell and Bassem Mroue in Beirut contributed
© 2024 The Canadian Press
