The funeral of Abbas Ahmed Khalil, Nasrallah;s grandson, in southern Lebanon
Abbas Ahmed Khalil, an operative of the pro-Iranian Imam Hossein Division militia who was killed on Saturday in an attack attributed to Israel on the southern Lebanon town of Naquora, is the grandson of Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah, the Voice of the Capital, a website affiliated with the Syrian opposition, reported on Sunday afternoon.
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Khalil's father, known as Abu Ali Noah, is Nasrallah's personal escort and is reported to fight alongside the Syrian regime and pro-Iranian militias in Syria. The credibility of this report remains uncertain.
IDF attack on Saturday on a car carrying terrorists belonging to the Imam Hossein Division
(Video: IDF Spokesperson's Unit)
According to the report, this isn't the first instance of a Nasrallah relative dying in the war. In January, Wissam Tawil, a commander in the organization's elite Radwan Force, was killed in Khirbet Silem, southern Lebanon. Tawil was related to Hassan Nasrallah through one of Nasrallah's wives, the website reported.
The IDF claimed responsibility for attacking a vehicle in Naqoura on Saturday, stating it targeted terrorists from the Imam Hossein Division who had launched rockets at Israel. However, the military has not provided further details on the incident.
Saudi TV channel Al Hadath reported that Saturday's attack targeted a "senior Hezbollah figure," resulting in the death of "a security figure" whose body was taken to a hospital. The report was later updated to state that three Hezbollah operatives were killed in the attack.
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Wreckage of a car reportedly carrying terrorists struck by the IDF in Naqoura in southern Lebanon
(Photo: AFP)
The three casualties were reportedly all members of the Iran-affiliated Imam Hossein Division militia that has been fighting against Israel alongside Hezbollah.
The militia was established in 2016 by the then-commander of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' elite Quds Force, Qasem Soleiman, who was killed in a U.S. strike in early 2020, and comprises thousands of operatives from all across the Middle East.
According to Iranian media reports, the militia is primarily made up of Syrians but includes members from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen and Lebanon among its ranks. It was established originally to fight Islamic State forces and ordinarily operates inside Syria.
Hezbollah claimed the three men who were killed in the Israeli drone strike were residents of southern Lebanon.
The IDF said it had observed attacks launched by the militia since the war began. IDF Arabic Spokesperson Lt. Col. Avichay Adraee said in November that the militia had arrived in Lebanon to assist Hezbollah and was taking part in altercations along the border. The military identified Dhu al-Faqar as the commander of the force and posted a forensic sketch of him on social media.
"Hezbollah and the Imam Hossein militia are dragging Lebanon into paying dearly on behalf of Hamas and ISIS," Adraee said in an X post. "The IDF is on alert to respond with force against anyone attempting to threaten security in the north."