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Who was Hassan Nasrallah, Hezbollah’s formative leader killed by Israel?

After decades of leading Hezbollah and overseeing its rise both in Lebanon and in the region, Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah was killed in an Israeli strike in Beirut.

Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah give a televised speech in a hanger in the Beirut suburb of Dahiyeh in Lebanon on May 24, 2024, following the death of President Ebrahim Raisi of Iran in a helicopter crash.
Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah give a televised speech in a hanger in the Beirut suburb of Dahiyeh in Lebanon on May 24, 2024, following the death of President Ebrahim Raisi of Iran in a helicopter crash. — OLIVER MARSDEN/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images

BEIRUT — Hezbollah’s powerful leader, Hassan Nasrallah, was killed in a major Israeli strike in the southern suburbs of the Lebanese capital, Beirut, on Friday, marking a significant blowback for the group.

Both Hezbollah and Israel confirmed Nasrallah's death on Saturday.

Nasrallah, 64, had headed the Shiite paramilitary group since 1992. Since Hamas' Oct. 7 attack and the ensuing Israeli war on Gaza, Hezbollah, which is designated by the US and several other countries as a terror group, has been engaged in heavy cross-border fire with Israel in a show of support for the Gaza Strip.

Who was Nasrallah?

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