An article in the Israeli newspaper "Yedioth Ahronoth" mentioned that Iran warned "Hezbollah" about the possibility of Israel attempting to assassinate its Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah. The author of the article, Smadar Perry, stated that an Iranian envoy arrived in Beirut immediately after the assassination of Sami Abdullah, the leader of Hezbollah's "Nasser" unit in southern Lebanon, and met privately with associates of Hassan Nasrallah to convey Iran's concern that Israel was targeting Nasrallah himself.
According to the author, it has long been understood that "Hezbollah" believed Israel did not intend to eliminate Nasrallah during his 32 years of leadership of the party. While Nasrallah remains the prominent figure in the party, the newspaper claims that reports occasionally naming potential successors likely disturb Nasrallah, as it is suspected that Tel Aviv is leaking this information to weaken him and create internal tension within Hezbollah's leadership.
"Yedioth Ahronoth" stated that the Mossad "apparently knows Nasrallah's exact location at all times. Even if he changes his whereabouts, our people are well-informed." The article adds that "Nasrallah himself knows that Israel can reach him but refrains from doing so." Although the information was presented in an opinion piece, it was framed in the context of Israel escalating its targeted assassination policy directed effectively against the senior leadership of Hezbollah.
