Israel said it killed the leader of Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah. Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of the terrorist army, was killed by Israel Defense Forces in a precise strike in Beirut last night. The death was later acknowledged by Hezbollah. The militant group's Secretary General is believed to have died on Friday after Israel launched strikes in the southern suburbs of Beirut that leveled several buildings. Nasrallah was the main target. Nasrallah had led the militant group for more than three decades and, with the support of Iran, turned Hezbollah into one of the world's most potent non-state militias. His death comes months after rising tensions, including cross-border rocket strikes, targeted killings, and covert operations. Here's how the conflict escalated: Israel and Hezbollah began trading fire in October after the Hamas-led attack on Israel sparked a war in Gaza. Like Hamas, Hezbollah, designated by the U.S. as a terrorist group, are closely aligned with Iran. The Lebanese militant group said its attacks on Israel were in support of Palestine and vowed to continue until a ceasefire was reached.

in Gaza. Hostilities had been largely contained to areas near the border, destroying towns and displacing tens of thousands on both sides. As tensions grew, the US and the International Community pushed for diplomatic solutions, but Israel and Hezbollah continued to exchange fire daily. Israel conducted a number of high-profile intelligence operations, including the targeted killing of Hezbollah commanders. Initially, both sides seemed reluctant to escalate into a bigger conflict, but tensions boiled over in September when pagers and walkie-talkies issued to Hezbollah members simultaneously exploded across the country. More than 30 people were killed over 2 days, and thousands were injured. Hezbollah blamed Israel for the attacks. Israeli authorities did not publicly comment on the peder attacks, but the country's defense minister said Israel was starting a new phase of the war in the North. Israel then carried out waves of air strikes across Lebanon over nearly 2 weeks, killing hundreds, including a number of Hezbollah commanders, and called on civilians to evacuate their homes. The strike on September 27th was

Israel's most aggressive move in weeks of elaborate intelligence operations, targeted killings, and heavy bombardments aimed at stopping Hezbollah from attacking across the Lebanese border into Israel. After the strike, Israel claimed Nzala was dead, killed in that massive air strike. Senior officials from Hezbollah and Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps were also at the site, people familiar with the matter said. The Israeli military says the strike also killed Ali Karaki, a Hezbollah commander whom Israel targeted earlier in the week. Hezbollah and Israel have fought numerous wars, the last one being in 2006. It started after Hezbollah ambushed an Israeli military patrol during a cross-border raid, killing two soldiers and capturing others. Israel retaliated with overwhelming force; its bombardment killed around 1,000 Lebanese civilians and damaged infrastructure, but it did limited damage to Hezbollah. Despite its overwhelming power, Israel reached the brink of military disaster after it launched a ground invasion of southern Lebanon, where Hezbollah was able to use guerrilla tactics to inflict significant casualties on Israeli.

forces experts say Nala's death is an enormous blow not only to the group he led but also to its main backer, Iran, and its wider network of aligned militias in the Middle East. Israel hoped his death could significantly degrade Hezbollah and head off the need for a ground invasion into Lebanon. According to the International Organization for Migration, more than 200,000 people have been displaced in Lebanon since October as a result of the conflict with Israel.

Hassan Nasrallah Dead: How the Israel-Hezbollah Conflict Escalated | WSJ

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