The Obama/Biden team administration is doing its best to protect Hezbollah from retaliation by Israel for its murder of 12 Druze children in the rocket attack on Majdal Shams over the weekend. Obsma/Biden seeks to preserve both Hamas and Hezbollah as Iranian assets. See, for example, this current Reuters story.
Israel struck back yesterday with a pinpoint attack that killed Fuad Shukr in a suburb of Beirut (according to FDD’s Mark Dubowitz, on a visit to his mistress). The IDF attributes responsibility for the Majdal Shams attack as well as the killing of numerous Israelis and others in years past to Shukr. Shukr was Hezbollah leader Hasan Nasrallah’s military adviser and right-hand man.
A limerick awaits: There once was a terrorist named Shukr…
In fact, the United States had its own claim on Shukr. The Department of State had a $5 million reward out for information on Shukr. See the State Department Rewards for Justice Post on Shukr here (“Shukr played a central role in the October 23, 1983 bombing of the U.S. Marine Corps Barracks in Beirut which killed 241 U.S. military personnel and wounded 128 others”). Israel could put in for the reward but I’m sure it would be satisfied with a congratulatory message that will not be forthcoming.
For some reason, the NBC News story on Shukr’s termination omits our own interest in Shukr. In its rolling coverage of the strike, CNN links to the State State Department Rewards for Justice post on Shukr. The New York Times only vaguely allows that Shukr “was said to be a close adviser to the group’s leader and someone wanted by the U.S. government for his role in a 1983 bombing attack that killed roughly 300 American and French soldiers in Beirut.”
Early this morning, within hours of the strike on Shukr, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in “a treacherous Zionist raid on his residence” in Tehran. Haniyeh was reportedly killed along with one of his guards — according to an IRGC statement. Saudi Arabia’s Al-Arabiya added that Haniyeh was killed at approximately 2:00 a.m. Wednesday morning.
Details are sparse in both the Times of Israel and Jerusalem Post stories on Haniyeh’s long overdue demise. Haniyeh was in Tehran to attend the inauguration ceremony of the new Iranian president on Tuesday.
We know Israel has impressive intelligence on Iran and a related operational capability that derives from it. The AP describes the operation that took Haniyeh out as “a predawn airstrike,” but, again, details are sparse.
According to Iranian reports, Ismail Haniya was killed by a precision-guided missile that was fired directly into the bedroom of his apartment in Tehran at 2:00 in the morning. Supreme Leader Khamenei met with him just yesterday. pic.twitter.com/AIqxt4JNID
— Mike (@Doranimated) July 31, 2024
The Iranian regime has declared three days of mourning for Haniyeh. The immortal words of Moms Mabley apply to both Shukr and Haniyeh: They say you shouldn’t say nothin’ about the dead unless it’s good. He’s dead. Good!
Last word to Michael Doran.
Notice: All comments are subject to moderation. Our comments are intended to be a forum for civil discourse bearing on the subject under discussion. Commenters who stray beyond the bounds of civility or employ what we deem gratuitous vulgarity in a comment — including, but not limited to, “s***,” “f***,” “a*******,” or one of their many variants — will be banned without further notice in the sole discretion of the site moderator.