Bombing attacks on Beirut: Iran wants to support Hezbollah

On Friday night, a series of serious explosions once again rocked the Lebanese capital Beirut – where the rumble of Israeli bombs that fall every night on the southern suburb of Dahiye is now just as much a part of frightening everyday life as the whirring of Israel’s ever-present combat drones. The explosions shook the earth and released a huge cloud of shimmering orange smoke. It is unclear how many victims there were.

According to media reports and rumors on social networks, the attack was aimed at Hachem Saffiedine – who was apparently soon to succeed his cousin Hassan Nasrallah. The Hezbollah chief was killed almost a week ago in a massive attack by the Israeli Air Force on a command bunker in the south of Beirut.

Israel’s bombardment continues unabated

It is not clear whether Saffiedine was actually the target and whether he was even hit. According to the Lebanese newspaper L’Orient-Le Jour, apparently not even Hezbollah itself knows whether its designated leader is still alive or not. If Saffiedine were dead, the militia would have lost its most important cadre for the second time in less than a week.

Meanwhile, Israeli bombardments continue with unabated intensity. Dahiye, the densely built-up suburb of Beirut controlled by Hezbollah, is now the target of violent attacks almost every night. But now the bombs are also falling elsewhere. There were air strikes both in the Sunni district of Cola and near the center of Beirut. The Israelis also bombed the border crossing with Syria, which had recently been used by tens of thousands of refugees – according to Israel, it was used by Hezbollah to smuggle Iranian weapons into the country.

Israel’s ground offensive in the south is also progressing. According to Israeli information, around 250 Hezbollah fighters have been killed either from the air or on the ground in the last two days. The militia has so far remained silent about its own losses, but claimed to have killed seventeen Israeli soldiers. All information cannot be verified. Israel has so far reported the deaths of nine of its own soldiers. On Friday, two Israeli soldiers were also killed in a drone strike by an Iraqi militia in the Golan Heights. Twenty other soldiers were injured.

 

“Hezbollah provides important services”

Meanwhile, the Lebanese government in Beirut is making desperate appeals to prevent further destruction of their country, but appears to be powerless. Neither Hezbollah nor Israel currently appear interested in ending the fighting, although Lebanon’s foreign minister claimed in a recent interview with CNN that Hezbollah leader Nasrallah had agreed to a limited ceasefire shortly before his death. There is currently no confirmation of this from other sources.

Given the increasing spread of the conflict, a ceasefire is now unlikely to be achieved. Instead, the warring parties are apparently preparing for a long war. Israel has vowed retaliation after the Iranian missile attack. The Iranians, in turn, sent their foreign minister to Beirut on Friday, who reiterated that his country supported a coordinated ceasefire in Gaza and Lebanon.

In Tehran, however, a different rhetoric prevails. There, Iranian revolutionary leader Ali Khamenei led Friday prayers for the first time in five years. With an assault rifle in his hand, he announced that the “Axis of Resistance” led by Iran, which includes Hezbollah, would not give up and would win in the end. Although Hezbollah is currently experiencing its worst crisis, Khamenei said: “By defending not only Gaza but also the Al-Aqsa Mosque, Hezbollah is providing an important service to the entire Islamic world.” Israel will never win.