new video loaded: ‘We’re Still Living in Fear’: Escaping the Attacks in Lebanon
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transcript
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‘We’re Still Living in Fear’: Escaping the Attacks in Lebanon
Tens of thousands of people have been displaced in Lebanon. Khaled Hussein, 20, fled Syria as a child. He describes the bombardment that forced his family to flee again.
Khaled Hussein, filmed this video from his home near the Lebanese city of Nabatiyeh. It shows an Israeli airstrike hitting just a few hundred meters away and hide here on base. As the bombings continued, Khaled and his family decided they had to escape. They’re now among at least 800 people taking shelter at this U.N. facility south of Beirut after fleeing the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah. Since last week, Israeli airstrikes on Lebanon have killed more than 700 people and forced more than 90,000 to leave their homes. For Khaled, like many of the people sheltering here, it’s not the first time he’s been forced to flee war. In just a matter of days, hundreds of facilities like this have been set up across Lebanon to shelter people displaced by violence. Many of the people here are Syrian and Palestinian refugees living in Lebanon. For Imad Ahmed, a Palestinian refugee living in southern Lebanon, it’s the third time he’s had to flee a war with Israel. But this time, he’s had to do it with his children. Outside, dozens of people are hoping to get in, but being turned away because the facility doesn’t have the space to welcome them. The growing number of internally displaced has Lebanese authorities worried of a looming humanitarian crisis if the fighting continues.
Recent episodes in International
International video coverage from The New York Times.
International video coverage from The New York Times.
Shoppers are rushing to buy dupes of popular Sol de Janeiro scents that they say smell “gorgeous”Credit: B&M Bargains, Extreme Money Saving Deals and More/Facebook
One savvy shopper spotted the bargain buys and posted them on the B&M Bargains, Extreme Money Saving Deals and More Facebook group, writing: “Found these Body mists in a Morrisons local £2 they smell amazing smell lasted for hours I have one happy teenager.”
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The user also replied to a comment saying: “It’s a body mist Sol de Janeiro dupe sorry I am not a professional social media Guru.
“I was asking the lady in the shop she said they have gone into all Morrisons locals.”
Another shopper tagged their pal and commented: “Please go Morrisons I need them all.”
A second wrote: “Do they smell the same as the real ones, as we pay £40 for one bottle of real ones.”
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Posters replied stating “they smell basically the same” and “these smell so much stronger and like the real fragrances”.
A third posted: “They are gorgeous!!! I bought one just as a little handbag spray and the smell lasts days, my partner loves it!”
While a fourth tagged their friend and said: “If you see these let me know, please. Good stocking fillers.”
The Morrisons deal will likely not be around for long as the sign above the bargain bin states “when it’s gone it’s gone”.
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It’s always best to phone ahead to your local shop to check what they have available to avoid disappointment.
You can find your nearest Morrisons store using the locator tool on the website.
It always pays to compare prices so you know you’re getting the best deal.
There are dozens of similar-looking scents listed online at the moment.
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One savvy shopper spotted a dupe on sale at Boots and posted it on the Extreme Couponing and Bargains UK Facebook group, writing: “The boots spray smells even better and lasts longer than the original Sol de Janeiro and at a fraction of the cost.”
The pistachio, almond and salted caramel scent is an imitation of Sol de Janeiro’s flagship Cheirosa 62 Perfume Mist.
The original branded product costs £24 for 90ml but is currently on offer at Boots for £19.20.
Earlier in the year Primark released brand new dupes, with a selection of different scents costing just £3.50 for 100ml.
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The pink version is Primark’s Hawaii Paradise Body Mist.
Best Sol De Janeiro Dupes
Here’s everywhere you can nab dupes of Sol De Janeiro products, from the iconic mists all the way to body butters…
PS… Body Mists £3.50 Scents: Hawaii Paradise, Capri Breeze and Maldives Sunset
PS… Post-Tan Body Butter £3 Scents: Blood Orange
Poundland
Body Stories Body Mist £2 Scents: Brazilian Bliss
Body Stories Body Butter £2.50 Scents: Brazilian Bliss
It’s always a good idea to shop around to make sure you can find the best deals.
There are plenty of comparison websites out there that’ll check prices for you – so don’t be left paying more than you have to.
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Most of them work by comparing the prices across hundreds of retailers.
Google Shopping is a tool that lets users search for and compare prices for products across the web. Simply type in keywords, or a product number, to bring up search results.
Price Spy logs the history of how much something costs from over 3,000 different retailers, including Argos, Amazon, eBay and supermarkets.
Once you select an individual product you can quickly compare which stores have the best price and which have it in stock.
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Idealo is another website that lets you compare prices between retailers.
All shoppers need to do is search for the item they need and the website will rank them from the cheapest to the most expensive one.
CamelCamelCamel is another option – but only for goods that are sold on Amazon.
To use it, type in the URL of the product you want to check the price of.
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How to bag a bargain
SUN Savers Editor Lana Clements explains how to find a cut-price item and bag a bargain…
Sign up to loyalty schemes of the brands that you regularly shop with.
Big names regularly offer discounts or special lower prices for members, among other perks.
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Sales are when you can pick up a real steal.
Retailers usually have periodic promotions that tie into payday at the end of the month or Bank Holiday weekends, so keep a lookout and shop when these deals are on.
Sign up to mailing lists and you’ll also be first to know of special offers. It can be worth following retailers on social media too.
When buying online, always do a search for money off codes or vouchers that you can use vouchercodes.co.uk and myvouchercodes.co.uk are just two sites that round up promotions by retailer.
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Scanner apps are useful to have on your phone. Trolley.co.uk app has a scanner that you can use to compare prices on branded items when out shopping.
Bargain hunters can also use B&M’s scanner in the app to find discounts in-store before staff have marked them out.
And always check if you can get cashback before paying which in effect means you’ll get some of your money back or a discount on the item.
Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing money-sm@news.co.uk.
Although she had been an acclaimed stage actress since the 1960s, and had a varied and successful career on the big screen, she insisted she had led “a perfectly normal life” until her role in Downton Abbey.
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The ITV drama, which was loved by viewers all around the world, had elevated her to a new level of superstardom late in her life – and she indicated that she regretted what she had lost as a result.
ITV
The period ITV drama Downton Abbey ran from 2010 to 2015, followed by two films
In the drama, which aired between 2010 and 2015, Dame Maggie played Violet Crawley, the Dowager Countess of Grantham, the grand matriarch who excelled at withering one-liners.
“It’s ridiculous,” she said of the way public recognition changed during that time.
Recalling pre-Downtown life, she said: “I’d go to theatres, I’d go to galleries, and things like that on my own. And now I can’t. And that’s awful.”
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She added that Fulham Road, in southwest London, was “dodgy” enough without being spotted walking down it.
That’s not to say she never liked being approached by fans.
Her role as the formidable Professor McGonagall in the Harry Potter films won her legions of younger fans – something she seemed to enjoy.
“A lot of very small people used to say hello to me and that was nice,” she said during an interview on the Graham Norton Show in 2015.
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“It was a whole different lot of people,” she said, noting that, to them, it was like she had never existed before.
“She loved kids recognising her from Harry Potter,” added Nick Hynter, the stage and screen director who directed Dame Maggie in The Lady in the Van. “She loved that.”
‘She loved Bananagrams’
For those who worked with her, it’s understandable they may have felt a bit of trepidation at first, given her enormous reputation.
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Lesley Nichol, who acted as Downton Abbey’s cook, said she was “terrified” when she first heard she would be working with Dame Maggie.
“I’d never worked with someone of that calibre,” she told BBC Radio Ulster. “And I thought, I don’t know what I’ll say to her, it will be really tricky, God she’ll probably be really grand.”
Ronald Grant
Dame Maggie Smith’s role in the Harry Potter franchise brought her to a new generation of film fans
But Nichol said she quickly realised none of that was true.
“She was not looking for anyone to be scared of her, or in awe of her, she just wanted to be in the gang.”
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Nichol said that it was always “glorious” to spend time with Dame Maggie, and said they would spend time between takes playing the word game Bananagrams.
“She was fearsome at that and really competitive, and really good at it,” she said.
“But that’s the way she was, she was in with the crowd, and just very happy to be part of it all.”
Dame Maggie was known for her sharp tongue on screen and off.
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But that didn’t spoil her sense of fun, Hynter told BBC News.
“Everyone knows how witty she was, she had an extraordinary quick, super intelligent acerbic wit,” he said.
“But she was fun to be with, even when you were at the receiving end of her acerbic wit, you had to laugh.
“She was so smart, she was also capable of extraordinary sweetness and was a wonderful companion at concerts, ballet and theatre.”
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‘A glint of mischief’
Harry Potter stars have also been remembering how much fun Dame Maggie was on set.
On Saturday, Rupert Grint, who played Ron Weasley in the film series, posted a picture of him awkwardly dancing with Dame Maggie.
“She was so special, always hilarious and always kind,” he wrote.
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“I feel incredibly lucky to have shared a set with her and particularly lucky to have shared a dance.”
Of course, it wasn’t all fun and games.
PA Media
Dame Maggie Smith, Miriam Margolyes, Richard Harris and Alan Rickman starred in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets in 2002
Asked in her BFI interview to reflect on the most tormented thing she ever did, Dame Maggie recalled a time during the filming of Harry Potter, when she was stuck in a trailer in the snow for a week “with that daft hat on my head”.
“And sitting in that trailer day after day and not being used [while waiting for her next scene], that doesn’t make you feel that jolly. That was a horrid thing,” she said.
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“But there were other people in the trailer also moaning like Miriam Margolyes. You’re not alone when you moan.”
Margolyes, who also shared the screen with Dame Maggie in Ladies in Lavender, said the actress always had a “glint of mischief”.
“I saw what a kind person she could be as well as absolutely terrifying,” she said.
“I wouldn’t say I was a friend of hers, I was an acolyte, and she allowed me to be so.”
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Margolyes, who played Professor Sprout in the wizarding series, recalled a time when she was absent from filming, as she had finished her role on the show.
“[Dame Maggie] said ‘nonsense! If I’m in a scene, I want you there, so come back please’. And she talked to the producer and got me back, so I got a bit more money.”
She admitted that she was at times scared of her. “But you can forgive someone for being the best of the best can’t you, if they’ve got a bit of a temper.”
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The role of Jean Brodie, alongside future husband Robert Stephens, won Dame Maggie Smith an Oscar
From small stage to big screen, Dame Maggie’s moving performances always stole the show.
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But she was also immensely dedicated. Even in later life, she was known for never turning up on set without memorising her lines perfectly.
“I never saw her on set with a little script, she knew it before she got here,” Lady Carnarvon, who lives in Highclere Castle where Downton Abbey was filmed, told BBC Breakfast.
“She worked so hard, to get up at silly o’ clock… and to wear corsets for hours on end,” she said, adding that she continued working right up to the end of her life.
“I think inside, there was an anxiety to get it right,” Margoyles said. “But she always did.”
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Throughout it all, she remained famously private.
She rarely did interviews. And Margolyes notes that Dame Maggie “didn’t like being on chat shows”, despite being good at them.
When she won her first Oscar in 1970, for her performance in The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, she skipped the awards ceremony.
At the time, she was acting in a play in London. Many other actors would have let the understudy take over for the night, but not Dame Maggie.
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She did show up to accept her Special Award Bafta in 1993, but her speech lasted a mere 30 seconds.
“If it’s possible to be in films without taking your clothes off or killing people with machine guns. I seem to have indeed managed,” she said.
It all paints a picture of an actress who found the whole idea of being a star faintly embarrassing, despite having an entire Wikipedia page dedicated to the number of awards she has won.
“She was a very private person,” Lady Carnarvon added.
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“I always wanted to respect that and not overstep any boundaries. Which I think she was in that way, just like her character on TV.”
But despite being determined to go under the radar whenever possible, Dame Maggie absolutely made her mark on everyone she met.
Perhaps her old friend, the late actor Kenneth Williams, put it best, in his diary entry about Dame Maggie in December 1962.
“The weather cold and dreary and mediocre audiences made [Dame Maggie’s] departure drab and unexciting. I didn’t say goodbye or anything, ‘cos I’d have cried.
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“But that girl has a magic, and a deftness of touch in comedy that makes you really grateful, and she’s capable of a generosity of spirit that is beautiful.
“She’s one of those rare people who make things and places suddenly marvellous, just by being there. She’s adorable.”
It is a testament to how long, varied and celebrated a career Dame Maggie Smith enjoyed that it would be insulting to point to any one defining role. In fact, it is reductive even to consider one particular medium.
For film-goers, there’s her Oscar-winning performance in The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (1969). For those who grew up in the 2000s on Harry Potter, Smith, who has died at the age of 89, will always be Professor Minerva McGonagall.
On the small screen, she glowered through Downton Abbey as the indomitable grandmother to a thousand memes, Violet Crawley, Dowager Countess of Grantham.
But many will argue that it is in the theatre that this most versatile of performers showed off a complete mastery that had critics and audiences enthralled, playwrights crafting their work specifically for her and male counterparts cowering in the wings.
Born in Ilford, Essex in 1934, she was brought up in Oxford where, at the age of 17, she made her stage debut playing Viola in Twelfth Night and her professional debut on Broadway four years later, in 1956.
As Smith herself succinctly put it: “One went to school, one wanted to act, one started to act, and one’s still acting.” Showing a particular talent for comedy, she appeared in revues and farces, before catching the eye of Sir Laurence Olivier, who recruited her for the National Theatre, where she quickly established herself as his peer, if not his rival.
Her range saw her triumph in plays by Noël Coward while also winning plaudits for the title role in a production of Ibsen’s Hedda Gabler directed by Ingmar Bergman. When her Desdemona transferred to the big screen, she received the first of several Academy Award nominations.
Following early screen appearances in The Pumpkin Eater (1964) and The Honey Pot (1967), in 1970 she won her first Oscar, Best Actress for The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, and another in 1979 for Best Supporting Actress in California Suite.
Throughout the next decades, she would collaborate with Merchant Ivory, Alan Bennett, Steven Spielberg and Agnieszka Holland on film, as well as appearing in plays by Oscar Wilde, William Congreve and Edward Albee. Peter Shaffer wrote 1987’s Lettice and Lovage specifically for her.
She was married twice, for eight years to actor Sir Robert Stephens — with whom she had two sons, actors Chris Larkin and Toby Stephens — and to playwright Beverley Cross from 1975 until his death in 1998.
In her later years, she never lost touch with her comic roots, appearing in crowd-pleasers such as Sister Act (1992) with Whoopi Goldberg and The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2011), alongside her close contemporary Dame Judi Dench.
Offstage, Smith made for an entertaining raconteuse on talk shows, whether reciting Sir John Betjeman for Sir Michael Parkinson with her frequent stage companion Kenneth Williams, or disparaging her latest manifestation of fame to Graham Norton. When the latter asked if she had ever watched Downton Abbey, she pursed her lips and drolly replied: “I’ve got the box set.”
She could have a spikiness and wit that Dowager Violet would have enjoyed, once saying of Glenn Close: “That’s not an actress, that’s an address.” Her irreverence was proof that no matter how many titles she received — she was made a Dame in 1990 and a member of the Order of the Companions of Honour, only the third female actor to receive such an honour, in 2014 — her character and freedom was as immune to praise and respectability as it was to criticism.
Tributes have come in from King Charles III and British political leaders from all parties, as well as co-stars and directors.
Sir Kenneth Branagh called her “unquestionably one of the greats”, going on to say: “It was an honour to work with Maggie Smith. A privilege to watch her. In tragedy, she made you catch your breath while she broke your heart. In comedy, she could get a laugh from a look or a line at any time she wished. She was sharp and prepared at work, exhilarating company away from it.”
AN EXACT word on your 50p coin could make it worth 700 times more as the rare coin sparks a bidding war on eBay.
The unique coin is said to be a must-have for collectors, selling for a whopping hundreds on the online auction site.
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The rare coin sold for a whopping £350 on eBayCredit: eBay
The rare 50p coin was issued in 2005 and features Samuel Johson’s Dictionary which saw its value skyrocket.
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The wording on the back of the coin makes it a unique piece of British decimal coinage.
What adds to this coin’s value is its rarity, making it a sought-after item that collectors are eager to obtain.
The auction on eBay revealed that four bidders attempted to snap up the rare coin which eventually sold for a staggering £350.
The seller received 5-star reviews from buyers who left enthusiastic comments praising the rare coin.
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“A+ pristine coin as advertised,” wrote one user.
Another commented: ” Great quality for coin collectors at a great price.”
While a third said: “Beautiful coin.”
It comes after a 50p coin proved to be a “true gem” thanks to its key details.
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The loose change rattling around in your pocket could be pieced together to form the Royal Shield of Arms design but it seems many people are unaware of this.
How to spot a 50p worth £50 and mule 20p that sells for £30
Matthew Dent redesigned the UK’s coins 16 years ago and now those designs are being replaced with the new UK coinage for King Charles III.
It was decided in 2005 that the country’s coinage was due an overhaul and The Royal Mint ran a competition for the public to submit their designs for the new-look coins.
Some 4,000 designs were submitted and The Royal Mint Advisory Committee selected Matthew Dent’s Royal Shield designs as the winner in 2008.
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The Royal coat of arms details a shield divided into four quarters representing England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland.
Matthew’s winning design replaced Christopher Ironside’s Britannia depiction originally on the reverse of all 50ps.
Matthew said at the time: “I felt that the solution to The Royal Mint’s brief lay in a united design, united in terms of theme, execution and coverage over the surface of the coins.”
Using all the coins ranging from the 1p to the 50p, they fitted together rather like a jigsaw and formed a complete shield – as could be seen on the £1 coin design issued from 2008 to 2015.
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The old round pound was then replaced by the 12-sided Nations of the Crown £1 in 2017 and have now been withdrawn from circulation.
However, the definitive 1p, 2p, 5p, 10p, 20p and 50p shield coins are still in circulation, which means the Royal Shield can still be collected and completed, Change Checker says.
To help you get started you can obtain your own Royal Shield Collector Pack which comes with the Royal Shield 1p, 2p, 5p, 10p and 20p, so all you need to look for is the 50p in your change in order to complete it.
How to sell a rare coin
If, after checking, you realise you’ve come across a rare coin, there are a number of ways you can sell it.
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You can sell it on eBay, through Facebook, or in an auction.
But be wary of the risks.
For example, there are a number of scams targeting sellers on Facebook.
Crooks will say they’re planning to buy the item and ask for money upfront for a courier they’ll be sending around.
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But it’s all a ruse to get you to send free cash to them – and they never have any intention of picking your item up.
It’s always best to meet in person when buying or selling on Facebook Marketplace.
Ensure it’s a public meeting spot that’s in a well-lit area.
Avoid payment links and log in directly through the payment method’s website.
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Most sellers prefer to deal with cash directly when meeting to ensure it’s legitimate.
The safest way to sell a rare coin is more than likely at auction.
You can organise this with The Royal Mint’s Collectors Service. It has a team of experts who can help you authenticate and value your coin.
You can get in touch via email and a member of the valuation team will get back to you.
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You will be charged for the service, though – the cost varies depending on the size of your collection.
Meanwhile, you can sell rare coins on eBay.
But take into account that if you manage to sell your item then eBay will charge you 10% of the money you made – this includes postage and packaging.
Always keep proof of postage to protect yourself from dodgy buyers who may claim they never received the item.
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Send the parcel by tracked delivery if you can as this way they can’t claim it never arrived.
Most rare and valuable 50p coins
WE reveal the Royal Mint’s most rare and valuable 50p coins in circulation.
Triathlon
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Minted in 2011, the Triathlon 50p depicts the same sport which featured in the 2012 Olympics.
There are more than 1,160,000 of the coins in circulation.
With over 200million 50ps circulating in the UK, that makes this coin quite a rare find.
The highest recent sale we’ve found on eBay recently was £30 on June 21.
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Judo
Judo is a popular sport that involves grappling with your opponent.
But despite the design, it’s not so easy to get a hold of this coin, of which there are just 1,161,500 in circulation.
The piece was designed by David Cornell after he won a national competition.
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It was minted in 2011 and the highest bid we’ve seen on eBay was for £17.95 on June 21.
Wrestling
Wrestling was one of the first Olympic sports so it’s not surprising that it features on one of the 50p pieces.
The 2011 coin was designed by Roderick Enriquez, a graphic designer from Hammersmith, London.
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We’ve seen it sell for as much as £15 online so is worth digging around for.
In recent months, one was sold on eBay for £11.95 on June 18.
Football
Of all the coins created to commemorate the 2012 Olympic Games, the 50p Football is among the rarest.
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It features an explanation of the controversial offside rule on it, with 1,125,000 produced.
One sold for £20 on eBay on June 11, although it has been known to go for as much as £75 in the past.
Kew Gardens
The Kew Gardens 50p is the rarest of all the 50p pieces, with only 210,000 in circulation.
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They have been known to sell for as much as £895 on eBay before.
The design was created by Christopher Le Brun RA and features the famous Chinese Pagoda with a leafy chamber that twists around the tower.
The coin often sparks the interest of new coin collectors due to its rarity.
The highest sale we found in recent weeks was £142 on June 22 with 23 bids.
Israel claims to have killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in an IDF airstrikeCredit: AFP
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Israel has targeted buildings in Lebanon where they believe Hezbollah infrastructure or fighters are hiding outCredit: AP
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Smoke has continued to rise in the southern suburbs of Beirut todayCredit: EPA
Nasrallah, 64, was killed in the deadly missile barrage in Beirut, according to the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF).
Confirmation of Nasrallah’s death would mark a pivotal night for Israel after his 32-year reign as boss where he built up the group as a formidable force in the Middle East.
No official statement has been released by Hezbollah as of yet.
The fighter jet blitz also wiped out several other commanders and officials including Ali Karki, the Commander of Hezbollah’s Southern Front, the IDF claim.
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Muhammad Ali Ismail, the commander of Hezbollah’s missile unit in southern Lebanon, his deputy and “other senior officials” were also taken out.
Israel has wiped out a number of top Hezbollah commanders in airstrikes as they look to continue destroying the para-militant group.
Over the past 11 months, Israel has eliminated nearly all of the terrorist top brass.
Leading many to believe replacing Nasrallah will be a tricky task with a natural predecessor yet to be lined.
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The IDF appears to have been tactically hitting Hezbollah chiefs from the ground up in order to prevent them from building back up from a place of stability.
The man potentially poised to take over from Nasrallah was killed at the end of July.
Israel has decimated Hezbollah leadership but terror group hasn’t gone ‘all in’ yet with its weapons
Shukr was identified as Nasrallah’s right-hand man and was one of Hezbollah’s key military officials since the organisation was founded over four decades ago.
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The United States sanctioned Shukr in 2015, accusing him of playing a key part in the 1983 bombing of the US Marine barracks in Beirut.
Ibrahim Aqil – a terror master on the US most wanted list for 40 years – was the biggest scalp claimed in the IDF blast on southern Beirut.
Aqil, who had a $7 million bounty on his head, was regarded as the second in command of the Lebanese terror group.
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Hezbollah later confirmed Ahmed Wahabi, commander of its elite Radwan Force, had also been killed.
Wahabi was the head of the terror group’s “central training unit,” and was previously top brass in the elite Radwan Force which fought in Syria.
Senior officer Talal Hamiya was named to takeover from Aqil alongside Karaki – the commander who was also eliminated alongside Nasrallah, according to the IDF.
Israel’s attacks have followed a pattern of slowly advancing up the chain of command with several men who worked under Karaki being taken out in the months prior.
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Taleb Abdullah, the commander of the Nasr regional division, and Muhammad Nasser, the commander of the Aziz regional division were killed in airstrikes in Lebanon, on June 11 and July 3.
ISRAEL has claimed to have killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in a series of massive aircraft strikes that rocked Lebanon.
If true, his death would mark a huge shift in the Middle East crisis, with Hezbollah being left incredibly weak and Iran losing its grip on its biggest terror proxy.
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Here we we take a look at Hassan Nasrallah’s life and his rise as the biggest terror boss in the Middle East.
Born in 1960, Nasrallah belonged to a poor Shia Muslim family who grew up in the slums of Sharshabouk in Beirut.
While growing up, he moved to south Lebanon to study theology and became a devout follower of Islam.
In 1982, Nasrallah joined Hezbollah shortly after it was formed as a political and paramilitary organisation.
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Over the years, the fundamental Islamist rose through the ranks leading Hezbollah in multiple conflicts against Israel.
It was under Nasrallah’s stone-cold leadership that Hezbollah became a regional military power before being deemed an Islamic terror organisation by many countries including Britain and America.
He made Israel the prime enemy of the terror group – and sought for its destruction.
The terror chief has deeper ties with other Shia-based terror outfits like the Houthis and Hamas in a bid to wipe Israel from the world map.
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Nasrallah holds the title of Sayyed, an honorific meant to signify the Shia cleric’s lineage dating back to the Prophet Muhammad.
He was regarded as an influential Islamist figure in the Middle East and had countless followers in the region.
For many years Nasrallah kept an extremely low profile and was never seen in public, fearing an assassination at the hands of the Israelis.
The ‘death of Hassan Nasrallah’
Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu is believed to have personally signed off Friday’s attack after learning about Nasrallah’s secret hideout.
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His spies are said to have discovered the General-Secretary was set to convene a meeting of his surviving leaders at the underground HQ.
IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halev said “a lot of preparation” was behind the attack.
He said: “It was the right time, [we] did it in a very precise way.”
Before warning Israel was set to continue with their targeted assaults across the border.
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“This is not the end of our toolbox, we have to be very clear. We have more capacity going forward,” Halev added.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi hit back and accused Israel of using US “bunker buster” bombs in their attacks on Beirut.
Mohanad Hage Ali, deputy research director of the Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut labelled Nasrallah as a “legendary figure” for many in Lebanon.
He told Reuters how his death would be a huge issue for Hezbollah: “The whole landscape would change big time.
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“He has been the glue that has held together an expanding organisation.”
Nasrallah led Iran-backed Hezbollah during the last war with Israel in 2006 and has been a thorn in his enemies side ever since.
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Citizens look over at a collapsed crater in the ground following an airstrikeCredit: AP
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Thousands of homes have been targeted forcing many to flee to safetyCredit: Rex
He oversaw a massive rebuild of the group’s military machine to become the most heavily armed terror group on Earth.
Just days ago he pledged to carry on fighting Israel armed with a terrifying arsenal of 150,000 missiles and drones.
Nasrallah’s closest allies over in Iran are also yet to comment on the chiefs condition but did slam Israel for their regime earlier today.
Professor Fawaz Gerges, chair of contemporary Middle Eastern Studies at the London School of Economics, told Sky News: “Benjamin Netanyahu has declared all-out war against the entire axis of resistance – including Iran.
“This is a decade-long war… Hezbollah will bide its time.”
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Despite this sources close to Israel say his death could halt the conflict from erupting across the Middle East.
Hezbollah’s revenge plot
The Iran-backed terror group have reportedly been stocking up on their weaponry in preparation for an escalation.
Iran is said to have particularly helped to bolster its arsenal by supplying light weapons, anti-tank missiles and long-range unguided missiles to Hezbollah, report US and regional sources.
A former Hezbollah officer described the south as “boiling,” as he claimed “we have everything the Iranians have”, say Ynet News.
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Reports also suggest that Hezbollah has been expanding its tunnel network in southern Lebanon to help relocate fighters across the country.
Nasrallah hinted at these preparations last week when he described the coming days as a “historic opportunity” for his men to fight against Israel.
In a chilling declaration, he said: “We’re waiting for their tanks. When they come, they’re welcome.”
Inside the terror tunnels, Hezbollah fighters can reportedly move unseen, store weapons, and launch ambushes, creating a dangerous cat-and-mouse game with the IDF.
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They can also move into a much larger network of bunkers, missile silos, and command centres, deeply embedded in civilian areas.
These tunnels – which can stretch for miles – link critical positions, allowing Hezbollah fighters to emerge, strike, and then vanish back underground before Israel can respond.
MORTAL enemies Hezbollah and Israel are on the verge of open warfare, risking a deadly wider conflict in the troubled region.
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After decades of bloodshed, the powerful and well-armed Islamist militia has tentacles stretching across the globe.
With Iran’s ayatollah as its puppet master, Hezbollah says it has 100,000 fanatical fighters at its call.
Analysts estimate it has as many as 500,000 rockets and missiles trained on Israel.
Military expert Professor Michael Clarke told me: “Hezbollah are a formidable force. They’re very well equipped. They’ve got more tunnels than Hamas had.
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“The tunnels in Lebanon are burrowed out of rock, and hard to destroy. They have around half a million projectiles that they can fire at Israel.
“If they chose to fire off great salvos of these things, a thousand or so at a time, three or four times a day, they are likely to overwhelm Israeli air defences.”
Hezbollah first made their name as a terrorist outfit in 1982 when Israel invaded its northern neighbour Lebanon to root out the Palestine Liberation Organization.
In the bloody fighting, Israel occupied the south of the country and Shia Muslim militias took up arms against the invaders.
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Seeing an opportunity to extend its influence, Iran provided funding and training to the group which became known as Hezbollah — meaning Party Of God.
Hell-bent on destroying Israel, it was soon wreaking havoc.
In 1983, it launched a suicide bombing of barracks in the Lebanese capital Beirut, housing US and French troops, leaving more than 300 dead.
The same year, another Hezbollah terrorist drove a van packed with explosives into the compound of the US Embassy in Beirut, killing 63.
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The terror group — which is also a political party providing education and health care — developed a taste for kidnapping, too.
Then in 2006, a separate full-blown war was triggered by a deadly cross-border raid by Hezbollah.
It was supposed to be a pushover for Israel’s well-trained regular armed forces against a guerilla army.
But as the Israeli tanks rolled into Lebanon they were quickly met with firm resistance.
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Hezbollah had tunnelled deep into Lebanon’s craggy hillsides and built well- fortified positions amid its towns and villages.
Rather than the ragtag irregulars the Israelis expected, they faced highly trained and well-armed troops with night-vision goggles and sophisticated communications.
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Debris from destroyed buildings piled up in BeirutCredit: Rex
Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.
The architect, collector and art patron Luca Bombassei is sitting comfortably on a long, pale sofa in the 15th-century Palazzo Contarini Corfù in Venice, just around the corner from the Accademia art gallery. He is surrounded with art and design, but there is a surprising diversity in his taste. Above him hangs a traditional painting — Canaletto’s “Architectural Capriccio with Classical Ruins” (1723) — and opposite that is a massive contemporary piece, “Life of Forms” (2017) by the American artist Nathlie Provosty.
“The idea was to create a dialogue between the two works, there are so many details in the Canaletto and then the Provosty is just all-black,” he says. Beside him on a table stands a sculpture by Ettore Sottsass of the Memphis Group of postmodern designers.
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The place almost dictates the art as much as the owner. In the adjoining library, a wall is covered with Venetian glassworks from the 1920s to the 1960s, displayed on shelving by Italian architect and designer Osvaldo Borsani. “When you live in Venice, you notice the special light that reflects through them,” Bombassei says. “They make me feel more Venetian!”
Bombassei was born in 1966 and lives between his flat in Venice, a masseria (fortified farmhouse) in Nardò, Apulia, and Milan, where his architectural practice specialises in the restoration of historical houses. “In Italy, there is a not a big distinction between architect and interior designer,” he says. “As I am a collector myself, I understand what it means to build a home around art, I have that sensitivity.”
He was brought up surrounded by art; his parents, the majority shareholders in the brake-disc company Brembo and collectors of traditional Italian art, still have an apartment in the neo-Gothic Casa dei Tre Oci on the island of Giudecca in Venice. As a young man he had to go through the cultural institute it housed at the time to get home in the evening. “My friends thought it was just incredible to live above a museum,” he laughs.
Bombassei’s Venetian home reflects the diversity of his taste, and he says he likes changing his mind and experimenting so that he can become “a better interior designer”. Along with the Canaletto and the Provosty, there is a portrait by Alex Katz (“East Interior”, 1979), an untitled Anish Kapoor wall sculpture from 1999 and Jenny Holzer’s 1987 LED piece “Laments: I am a man . . . ” which stands almost three metres tall, with red and yellow diodes spelling out the title. In his all-grey bedroom are a Sottsass Totem, a colourful stack of bulbous shapes, and a mushroom-like Gae Aulenti lamp. It is all shifted around regularly: “I always have a hammer and nails on me!”
Bombassei’s first love is Sottsass, of whom he has considerable holdings — from objects and furniture to limited editions. The designer, who experimented with colour, patterns and shapes and made furniture, glass and ceramic objects, was also an architect who worked in Milan. “He and his [Memphis] Group represented a period of innovation and they changed the way we think about design, bringing an artistic vision to design.” Together with Milan and Memphis, “Sottsass is my triangle of love.”
In Milan, Bombassei’s office is lined with wood panelling by Piero Fornasetti, a recreation of the decor originally in the Milanese apartment La Casa di Fantasia, designed by Gio Ponti for the Lucano family in 1952. In trompe l’oeil they show books, postcards and medallions on a floral background. The ensemble was bought at auction at Phillips in London in 2019 for £225,000.
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And then there is his home in Nardò, which he says gives him the space to commission large-scale works of art — not least an enormous yellow-and-blue work by the Swiss artist Olivier Mosset (“Wall Painting”, 2019), covering the roof. “When you walk on the roof you feel you are inside the work and at the same time you can see a 15th-century tower in the distance.”#
Bombassei in his entrance hall; the sculpture of Hercules dates to around 1650
As well as overseeing his practice, Bombassei presides over the Venice International Foundation, which both helps safeguard the artistic heritage of Venice and promotes contemporary art. I am rather surprised by this — we meet during the Biennale, when the city is awash with contemporary art — but he explains that most Venetian foundations focus on what he calls the past-past. “We support the near-past, for example by sponsoring [this year’s Francesco] Vezzoli exhibition in the Museo Correr. Most people don’t see the wonderful Carlo Scarpa installations on the upper floor, so this encourages them to go up to see them as well as the Vezzoli,” he says.
What are his plans for the future? He looks a bit baffled, admitting that he hasn’t really thought about this. “I am so curious, I fall in love with new places and things all the time,” he says, so for the moment, he continues to plan, design and buy. As he says, “Collecting is a sort of addiction.”
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