Israel claims Nasrallah died by suffocation

According to a report in the Israeli press, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah died by suffocation in a bunker following an Israeli airstrike on his hideout in Lebanon. It is believed that the body of 64-year-old Nasrallah was intact when recovered from the rubble, suggesting he did not suffer physical trauma from the explosion of the building above him.

As reported by Israel's Channel 12, Nasrallah suffocated due to toxic fumes that seeped into the underground bunker where he was hiding. The report stated that Nasrallah may have died 'in agony' as smoke from the explosions gradually filled the bunker, making it impossible to breathe. According to Reuters, Nasrallah's body was recovered on Sunday, and sources claimed there were no direct wounds on the body, which had led to the initial theory that the cause of death was blunt force trauma from the intensity of the blast.

IDF did not state the exact cause of death

However, according to Israel's Channel 12, a new theory has emerged suggesting that Nasrallah's bunker was not sufficiently ventilated and that toxic gases entering the room as a result of the bombings caused Nasrallah to “suffocate.” The IDF did not specify the exact cause of Nasrallah's death but released a statement on X: “Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of the Hezbollah terrorist organization and one of its founders, was eliminated yesterday, along with Ali Karki, the Commander of Hezbollah's Southern Front, and other Hezbollah commanders.”

Rocket attacks were launched

Nasrallah had led Hezbollah, which is designated as a terrorist organization by many countries, for 10 years. Although based in Lebanon, the group had the support of Iran and had also become a powerful political group in Lebanon. Opposing the existence of the State of Israel, Nasrallah had launched rocket attacks on the country following the Palestinian group Hamas's attack on Israel on October 7 last year, triggering a war between Israel and Hamas. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced last Saturday that they had “eliminated” Nasrallah and several other commanders serving him. This move followed the killing of numerous Hezbollah members in an attack where pagers exploded, for which Hezbollah blamed Israel.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, a close friend of Nasrallah, called for revenge and urged Muslims to support Lebanon and Hezbollah against Israel. However, according to The New York Times, which stated it had spoken with several senior Iranian officials, the Iranian leadership is reportedly divided on how to respond, with some calling for restraint to avoid war. The newspaper noted that in his statement, the Supreme Leader spoke of supporting Hezbollah against Israel rather than promising direct action.