ALWAGHT- Haitham Tabatabai, Hezbollah’s top military commander and one of its founding members, was martyred in an Israeli airstrike Sunday in Beirut’s southern suburbs.
The assassination of Haitham Tabatabai, Hezbollah’s highest-ranking military official, marked one of Israel’s most serious breaches of the ceasefire in the past year. Hezbollah announced his martyrdom with praise for his lifelong commitment to defending Lebanon, condemning the Israeli strike as a “treacherous attack” on civilian areas. The raid also killed four other fighters and was reportedly Israel’s third attempt to target him.
Tabatabai—known as Sayyed Abu Ali—was a founding member of Hezbollah and a central architect of its military doctrine and evolution. From joining the movement in the 1980s to rising through its ranks over four decades, he took on increasingly sensitive leadership roles and eventually became Hezbollah’s chief of staff after multiple senior commanders were assassinated last year.
Throughout his career, Tabatabai played pivotal roles in major operations against Israeli forces, including resistance missions before the 2000 liberation, leadership in the Nabatieh and Khiam axes, and key contributions during the July 2006 war. He later led intervention forces, helped develop the elite Radwan Force, and directed operations against extremist groups along Lebanon’s eastern border, strengthening internal security.
In recent years, his influence expanded further as he oversaw Hezbollah’s operational command during the 2023 Al-Aqsa Storm and in subsequent confrontations with Israel. After the 2024 Battle of the People of Might, he assumed full military leadership of the movement. Hezbollah vowed that his martyrdom would inspire renewed resolve among its fighters and pledged to carry forward his legacy and that of other fallen commanders.
