With Hezbollah severely compromised, Iran will lean on its other proxies to confront Israel.

In 1981, Israel destroyed Iraq’s nuclear reactor, leading Iran, Hamas, and Hezbollah to build underground facilities, countered by bunker-busting bombs like the GBU-28.

Safieddine is a cousin of Nasrallah and, like him, a cleric who wears a black turban denoting descent from Islam's Prophet Mohammed.

Once a restrained adversary, Hezbollah’s Hassan Nasrallah became a target in 2024 as shifting actions prompted Israel to end his long-standing deterrence.

Following Nasrallah’s assassination, Hezbollah’s covert Unit 910 threatens swift global retaliation against Israeli and Jewish targets, warn security experts.

Danon continued, accusing the PA of protecting Hamas instead of confronting them and encouraging terrorism through "pay to slay."

Hagari also announced that the IAF had begun restricting access to Beirut airport to block the importation of weapons.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu authorized the strike before addressing the United Nations General Assembly in New York on Friday morning.