Safieddine’s fate is unclear following an Israeli airstrike on Beirut

The fate of the most likely successor to Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah is unclear following an Israeli airstrike on Beirut.

An Israeli official told CNN that Hashem Safieddine was the target of the strike, but it is unclear if he was killed.

Safieddine is a maternal cousin of Nasrallah – the two studied in Iran together in the early 1980s. Just like Nasrallah, Safieddine is a staunch critic of Israel and the West, with deep alliances with the Iranian leadership.

Safieddine served as head of Hezbollah’s executive council and, until his predecessor’s death, was seen as one of the most likely heirs to the organization’s highest-ranking seat. The group has yet to name a successor to Nasrallah.

Israel says it killed Hezbollah’s communications leader in airstrikes

From CNN’s Eyad Kourdi and Pauline Lockwood

Israel’s military said it killed the head of Hezbollah’s communication unit in strikes on southern Beirut Thursday afternoon local time.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Arabic spokesperson, Avichay Adraee, said Mohammad Rashid Skaafi had been leading the group’s communications since 2000.

Hezbollah has not yet made any announcements about casualties following Thursday’s Israeli strikes in the southern suburbs of Beirut.

Some background: Israel’s barrage of strikes across Lebanon on Thursday killed at least 37 people and wounded 151, the Lebanese health ministry said. The Israeli military said Thursday it had hit Hezbollah’s intelligence headquarters in Beirut.

The IDF has pledged to continue to strike Hezbollah targets in Beirut, the Bekaa valley and southern Lebanon.

CNN