//Israel confirms killing of Hashem Safieddine, presumed next leader of Hezbollah//

In a statement on Tuesday evening, the Israeli military said strikes in the suburb of Dahiyeh had killed Hashem Safieddine and Ali Hussein Hazima, the head of the militant group’s intelligence branch, three weeks ago.

It was the first time Israel confirmed the killing of the most senior political official in Hezbollah after the former secretary general Hassan Nasrallah. Hezbollah had yet to comment on Israel’s claim. Safieddine was the head of Hezbollah’s highest political decision-making body, the executive council, and was reportedly picked as the successor to Nasrallah some years ago. He was also a cousin of the former secretary general and was seen as having much of the same charisma that inspired the cult of personality around Nasrallah.

His fate was unknown after Israeli strikes on Dahiyeh on 3 October, which Israel said were targeting an underground bunker where the senior leader was living.

Hezbollah had reportedly not been able to re-establish contact with Safieddine since the strike and rescue workers were prevented from reaching the site of the bombing.With the killing of Safieddine, only Naim Qassem, the deputy secretary general of Hezbollah, remains from Hezbollah’s public-facing senior leadership. Qassem has been the face of the group since the assassination of Nasrallah, but he does not enjoy the same popularity among Hezbollah supporters that the late secretary general had.