Tel Aviv/Beirut

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The conflict between Israel and Iran-aligned Lebanon-based militant group Hezbollah is escalating with each passing day. More than 700 people in Lebanon were killed in Israeli strikes over the past week. On Saturday (Sep 28), a wave of airstrikes hit Beirut's southern suburbs as Israel stepped up attacks on Hezbollah.

These strikes came a day after Israel knocked out six buildings in Beirut's southern suburb of Haret Hreik. The Israeli military said the strike, which killed and wounded dozens of people, hit the headquarters of Hezbollah in Beirut.

On Saturday, the Israeli military said that Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was eliminated during Friday's strikes. "Hassan Nasrallah will no longer be able to terrorize the world," the IDF said in a post on X.

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Hezbollah, on Saturday, confirmed that its leader Nasrallah was killed a day ago due to the Israeli strike. 

So, who was Hassan Nasrallah and how did he transform Hezbollah into one of the most powerful paramilitary groups in West Asia? Here's a look:

A profile of Hassan Nasrallah

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Nasrallah, 64, was born in 1960 into a poor Shiite family in Beirut’s impoverished northern suburb of Sharshabouk. He studied theology and joined the Amal movement, a Shiite political and paramilitary organisation, before becoming one of Hezbollah’s founders.

Also read | West Asia crisis: Israel says Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah 'eliminated' in Beirut strike

Nasrallah has led the Lebanon-based militant group for the last three decades. He built a power base as Hezbollah became part of a cluster of Iranian-backed factions and governments known as the Axis of Resistance.

Two days after its leader Sayyed Abbas Musawi, was killed in an Israeli helicopter gunship raid in south Lebanon, Hezbollah chose Nasrallah as its secretary-general in February 1992.

In 1997, the United States (US) designated Hezbollah as a terrorist organisation.

How Hezbollah transformed under Nasrallah

Under his leadership, the Lebanese militant group has fought wars against Israel and taken part in the conflict in Syria, helping tip the balance of power in favour of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad

Under Nasrallah, Hezbollah was credited with leading the war of attrition that led to the withdrawal of Israeli troops from south Lebanon in 2000. Following the Israeli withdrawal, Nasrallah rose to iconic status both within Lebanon and throughout the Arab world.

Also watch | Race to Power: Is the Israel-Hezbollah conflict helping Netanyahu politically?

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Nasrallah reshaped Hezbollah into an archenemy of Israel, cementing alliances with Shiite religious leaders in Iran and Palestinian militant groups such as Hamas, a report by the news agency Associated Press said.

His role in current West Asia crisis

A day after the Israel-Hamas war began on October 7, 2023, Hezbollah began attacking Israeli military posts along the border calling it a “backup front” for Gaza.

In speeches throughout the conflict, the 64-year-old argued that Hezbollah’s cross-border strikes had pulled away Israeli forces that would otherwise be focused on the Palestinian militant group Hamas and insisted that Hezbollah would not halt its attacks on Israel until a ceasefire was reached in Gaza.

Nasrallah maintained a defiant tone, even as tensions rose dramatically in recent weeks with Israel announcing a new phase in the conflict intended to push Hezbollah back from the border to allow thousands displaced from northern Israel to return, the Associated Press report said. 

(With inputs from agencies)