Israel Launches Hunt for Possible Successor to Hezbollah Leader Nasrallah: Series of Devastating Airstrikes

tel aviv - Israel has attempted to eliminate the intended successor to Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah with a series of devastating airstrikes.

Witnesses reported that the series of explosions was heavier than the attack on Hassan Nasrallah last week, utilizing American 'bunker busters'. Hezbollah has not officially appointed a new leader yet, partly out of fear that Israel would target them immediately.

Al-Din is by far the leading candidate. He is a nephew of Nasrallah, studied with him in Iraq, his brother is Hezbollah's representative in Iran, and Al-Din's daughter is married to the son of Qassem Soleimani, the Iranian general who was assassinated by the US a few years ago. Israel has killed almost the entire top leadership of Hezbollah in recent weeks.

Meanwhile, the Israeli military is expanding the number of targets in Beirut further and approached the airport last night. America has repeatedly warned Israel not to target Lebanese infrastructure. It remains to be seen if Israel will cross that line. IDF generals previously established the so-called Dahieh protocol, under which civilian targets should be struck to turn the population against Hezbollah. Dahieh is the southern district of Beirut where Nasrallah was reportedly killed.

Ayatollah Khamenei allegedly warned the Hezbollah leader in advance that his life was no longer safe in Lebanon. He urged him to flee the country after a series of explosions from pagers and walkie-talkies caused many casualties. Iranian officials told Reuters that Tehran had intelligence that Israel intended to liquidate Nasrallah. Khamenei himself fears becoming a target and is in hiding at a secure location.

Despite this, he led Friday prayers in Tehran, indicating how seriously he views the current situation. The last time Khamenei led Friday prayers was five years ago, after Soleimani's death. Like Nasrallah, he was a close personal friend of the Supreme Leader, who this week ordered Israel to be hit with around 200 ballistic missiles. An attack that cost the country at least $200 million.

Israel's defense, through the activation of the Arrow-2 and Arrow-3, likely cost much more. The military is now preparing a retaliatory action. Officials warn in the media that the country will come with a 'powerful' response within 'a few days'. The intended targets are still unclear, but Joe Biden said Thursday that the US is 'in discussion' with Israel about Iran's oil facilities. Just that remark alone caused a 5% increase in oil prices. An actual attack on those facilities would have a much greater impact.

It could also be a ploy by Biden, who will do everything possible to prevent Israel from attacking those oil facilities. The last thing Biden wants, so close to the presidential elections, is for American citizens to pay more at the pump.

If Israel only attacks 'military' targets, they may convince Tehran not to retaliate. After all, they were not the crucial oil or nuclear facilities. Iranian comments, however, expect Tehran to fire up to a thousand rockets at Israel in a retaliatory attack, including at civilian targets.

Nevertheless, Biden remains hopeful that a major regional war can be averted. 'But we still have a lot of work to do,' he said. Israel claims to be coordinating the retaliatory attack with the US. The American involvement would be a proportional action, targeting military bases, launch sites, and intelligence centers. However, Netanyahu has repeatedly refused to listen to the Americans in the past few months, such as their requests not to enter Rafah or Lebanon.

According to the Israeli evening news, Iran is seriously considering attacks on oil facilities. Authorities have reportedly imposed a 'tank maximum' on the population. The Arab Gulf states are also gravely concerned, fearing that important maritime routes will be blocked due to the military confrontation, which would have enormous consequences for exports.