In a shocking turn of events following the recent Israeli airstrike in Beirut, Israel has announced a significant discovery linked to the infamous Hezbollah leader, Hassan Nasrallah, who was killed in the strike on September 27. Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) have revealed that they found more than $500 million in gold and cash stashed within a secret bunker located beneath a hospital in Lebanon, which reportedly served as Nasrallah’s hideout. The IDF has released a video on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), showcasing their operation that targeted this clandestine location.
Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, an IDF spokesperson, stated, “The Israeli Air Force carried out precision strikes on Hezbollah's financial assets. Our target was a secret location with tight security, containing an underground vault housing millions of dollars in cash and gold.” He further emphasized that Hezbollah had utilized these funds to finance attacks against Israel. This bunker, strategically placed beneath a hospital, raised concerns about the potential misuse of the discovered wealth.
“This money could have been used for the rehabilitation of Lebanon,” Hagari remarked, appealing to the Lebanese government and international organizations to prevent Hezbollah from channeling these funds into terrorism and further aggression against Israel. Hassan Nasrallah, who led Hezbollah since 1992 after the death of the previous leader, has long been seen as one of Israel's most formidable adversaries. Born into a poor Shia family in 1960, Nasrallah's rise to power was marked by his involvement in anti-Israel military efforts and his ability to expand Hezbollah's military and political influence across Lebanon.
Under his command, Hezbollah emerged as a dominant political party, receiving over 340,000 votes in the 2018 parliamentary elections more than any other party since Lebanon's independence. In the wake of Nasrallah’s death and the subsequent revelations about his hidden wealth, the dynamics of both Israeli and Lebanese politics may shift dramatically. As tensions remain high, Israel's focus continues to center on dismantling the financial backbone of Hezbollah while urging Lebanese citizens to distance themselves from the group’s militant agenda. As the dust settles from this latest chapter in the Israel-Hezbollah conflict, the international community watches closely to see how these developments will influence the fragile stability of Lebanon and the ongoing war against terrorism in the region.