Israel was aware of slain Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah’s hideout for months but decided to finally take him out because it feared he would disappear to a different location, according to a report. The decision was taken last week and even the US was not apprised of it until the planes were on air.
Israel also used 80 bombs over several minutes which flattened six buildings, including Hezbollah’s underground headquarters in southern Beirut, reported The New York Times. There was no word about the weight or make of the bombs.
The report, quoting three senior Israeli defence officials, said Israel was planning the operation early last week while it was simultaneously engaged with the US about a ceasefire proposal. This was before Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu left Israel to give a speech at the United Nations.
On Wednesday, the IDF chief of staff Herzi Halevi met with Mossad chief David Barnea, Israel security agency Shin Bet's chief Ronen Bar and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant to get the plan approved. However, a few Cabinet ministers did not approve it, fearing it would harm the IDF’s ongoing activities in Gaza, reported The Times of Israel.
However, Halevi insisted that they move forward with the mission. We have what we need. We can go ahead with the operation. We know that Nasrallah is in the bunker," Halevi reportedly told Cabinet members.
Netanyahu boarded the plane on Friday after approving the strike.
Hezbollah confirmed Saturday morning that Nasrallah had been killed, along with its southern front commander Ali Karaki who had survived an Israeli hit attempt days earlier. However, Hashem Safieddine, a cousin of Nasrallah and his potential successor, was not at the underground Beirut bunker at the time of the strike.
Nasrallah was targeted by dozens of bunker-busting bombs dropped by Israeli Air Force fighter jets. The operation used F-15I fighter jets which took off from Hatzerim Airbase in southern Israel and half of the pilots who took part in the operation were reservists.
The fighter pilots knew who they were targetting and flew straight into the heart of Beirut in the Dahiyeh. Hezbollah wasn't aware of the jets and no missiles were fired at the planes. There was no danger to the crew.
"Everything we planned was executed precisely, with no errors, both in intelligence, the planning, with the planes, and the operation itself. Everything went smooth," the commander of the IAF’s 69th Squadron told reporters.
The jets then fired over 80 bombs at the target within seconds with very high precision.