Israel announces the assassination of a senior Hezbollah official in Damascus

The Israeli army announced on Tuesday evening the assassination of a senior official of the Lebanese Hezbollah in Syria in an air strike on the capital, Damascus. A Lebanese security source also confirmed the official's death.

The spokesman for the occupation army, Avichay Adraee, said in a statement that "an air force plane killed in Damascus today (Tuesday) the Hezbollah envoy to the Syrian army, Salman Nimr Jumaa."

He added that "Jumaa played a pivotal role, on behalf of Hezbollah, within the Syrian military system in transferring combat equipment, and he held various positions, especially in the Syrian arena, including operations officer at Hezbollah's Damascus headquarters."

He added that Jumaa "was appointed in recent years as the party's envoy to the Syrian army, and helped complete the transfer of combat equipment from the Syrians to Hezbollah during the war," according to the spokesman.

For his part, a Lebanese security source told Reuters that an Israeli air strike targeted a car near the Syrian capital, Damascus, on Tuesday afternoon, which resulted in the death of Salman Jumaa, according to the source.

The Syrian Arab News Agency reported that the raid took place on the road to Damascus International Airport, without giving further details about the deaths or injuries.

Intelligence information

The Israeli military later confirmed in a statement that Jumaa was killed in what it described as an intelligence-driven raid in Damascus, saying his killing "weakens Hezbollah's presence in Syria and Hezbollah's ongoing efforts to build up its strength."

Israel has intensified its raids on Syria since last year's Al-Aqsa Intifada, and Tel Aviv is believed to be targeting Iranian leaders and Hezbollah supply lines, as well as some facilities used for military development and weapons storage.

The Harmoon Center for Contemporary Studies monitored the raids launched by Israel on Syria last month, from October 15 to November 15, 2024, and explained that the total during the period studied amounted to 54 strikes, distributed across 6 governorates.

The study indicated that Homs - especially the city of Al-Qusayr - received the largest share of targeting with a total of 37 strikes, including 18 raids on bridges and main roads, 11 on industrial warehouses, and 6 strikes on border crossings, which indicates its logistical importance in securing Iranian supplies to Hezbollah across the Lebanese border.

Source: Agencies