Iran's Supreme Leader moved to secure location after Hezbollah chief reportedly killed: Report
New Delhi: Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has been moved to a secure location within the country following the reported killing of Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah in a targeted airstrike by Israel in southern Beirut. The move comes amid heightened tensions and security concerns in the region.
According to reports, Khamenei was transferred to a safer place as a precautionary measure after an emergency meeting of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, which he convened on Friday. The decision was made after Israel announced that it had eliminated Nasrallah during an airstrike on the group's underground headquarters in the Hezbollah-controlled suburb of Dahiyeh.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) stated that the strike targeted the underground base where senior Hezbollah leaders were advancing activities against Israel. “Hassan Nasrallah will no longer be able to terrorize the world," the IDF stated on social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter).
In the wake of Nasrallah’s death, Israeli forces have continued airstrikes in Dahiyeh and other parts of Lebanon. Israel also announced that it had eliminated Muhammad Ali Ismail, the Commander of Hezbollah's Missile Unit in southern Lebanon, along with his deputy Hussein Ahmad Ismail, in a separate airstrike.
These developments come shortly after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the United Nations General Assembly in New York, where he vowed to "degrade Hezbollah" until Israel's security objectives along the Lebanon border are achieved.
Israel’s latest offensive has targeted Hezbollah’s top leadership, as well as its strategic missile units. The group is yet to issue a statement confirming Nasrallah’s death, who led the Iran-backed group for 32 years.
With tensions rising in the region, Iran is reportedly in constant contact with Hezbollah and other allied groups to decide on the next course of action.
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South African police arrest suspect in mass shooting that killed 12, including 3 children
Johannesburg (AP): A 32-year-old suspect has been arrested in connection with a mass shooting which claimed the lives of 12 people including three children at an unlicensed pub earlier this month, South African police said on Monday.
The man is suspected of being one of the three people who opened fire on patrons in a pub at Saulsville township, west of South Africa's capital Pretoria, killing 12 people including three children aged 3, 12 and 16.
At least 13 people were also injured during the attack, whose motive remains unknown.
According to the police, the suspect was arrested on Sunday while traveling to Botlokwa in Limpopo province, more than 340 km from where the mass shooting took place on Dec 6.
An unlicensed firearm believed to have been used during the attack was recovered from the suspect's vehicle.
“The 32-year-old suspect was intercepted by Limpopo Tracking Team on the R101 Road in Westenburg precinct. During the arrest, the team recovered an unlicensed firearm, a hand gun, believed to have been used in the commission of the multiple murders. The firearm will be taken to the Forensic Science Laboratory for ballistic analysis,” police said in statement.
The suspect was arrested on the same day that another mass shooting at a pub took place in the Bekkersdal township, west of Johannesburg, in which nine people were killed and 10 wounded when unknown gunmen opened fire on patrons.
Police have since launched a search for the suspects.
South Africa has one of the highest homicide rates in the world and recorded more than 26,000 homicides in 2024 — an average of more than 70 a day. Firearms are by far the leading cause of death in homicides.
The country of 62 million people has relatively strict gun ownership laws, but many killings are committed with illegal guns, according to authorities.
According to police, mass shootings at unlicensed bars are becoming a serious problem. Police shut down more than 11,000 illegal taverns between April and September this year and arrested more than 18,000 people for involvement in illegal liquor sales.
