Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu Claims Two Hezbollah Leadership Successors Killed, IDF Select Wait Confirmation

(Ki-ka) Menhan Gallant, PM Netanyahu, Chief of IDF Lt. Gen. Herzei Halevi and Director of Shin Bet Ronen Bar. (Source: Shin Bet Security Service)

JAKARTA - Israel Defense Forces (IDF) chose to exercise restraint and confirm in advance the results of its attack on Beirut, Lebanon last week, when Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed two successors to the leadership of the Hezbollah militant group had been killed.

PM Netanyahu said the claim was in a video released by the prime minister's office.

"We have lowered Hezbollah's capabilities. We paralyzed thousands of terrorists, including Nasrallah himself and Nasrallah's successor, and his successor," Prime Minister Netanyahu said, without naming the last two people.

Earlier, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Hashem Safieddine, the person predicted to replace Nasrallah, may have been "disappeared". It was not immediately clear who Netanyahu meant by "substitute replacement"

Meanwhile, IDF spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Yahwi chose to exercise restraint, saying his party had learned that Safieddine was at Hezbollah's intelligence headquarters which was bombed last week.

"We attacked Hezbollah's intelligence headquarters in Beirut. This is the headquarters of the head of the intelligence division, Abu Abdullah Mortada. We know Hashem Safieddine was there with him," when asked at the press conference, quoted by The Times of Israel.

"The results of this attack are still being investigated, Hezbollah is trying to hide the details. If we know about it, we will let the public know," he said.

Safieddine has not been seen in public since the airstrikes, part of Israel's escalating attacks after a year of border clashes with Hezbollah.

"Currently, Hezbollah is weaker than before for years," said PM Netanyahu.

The Israeli military itself said on Tuesday that massive airstrikes against Hezbollah's underground installation in southern Lebanon over the previous 24 hours killed at least 50 fighters, including six sector commanders and regional officials.