Netanyahu: Hezbollah leader's assassination was necessary for Israeli success

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the assassination of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah as a necessary step to achieving Israel's current objectives.

Commenting on the killing, Netanyahu stated that earlier this week he had concluded that previous strikes on Lebanon would not be sufficient.

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◻️ Nasrallah’s death a ‘devastating blow’ that will trigger further violence – Beirut-based scholar

◻️ Zelensky’s ‘pie in the sky’ long-range missile hopes slow-walked by Washington - Ex-DoD Analyst

◻️ Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s speech to the General Debate of the 79th session of the UN General Assembly

◻️ Why is voter ID controversial in the US?

◻️ Big Apple's rotten core: NYC Mayor Adams' case echoes previous scandals

◻️ UK PM Starmer’s freebies row: gift that keeps on giving

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What is Hezbollah and how is it organized?

Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Beirut on September 27. Hashem Safieddine, the head of Hezbollah's executive council, has been named as Nasrallah’s most likely successor.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) claims that it has decapitated Hezbollah's chain of command, including Chief of Staff Fuad Shurk, Radwan Force commanders Ibrahim Aqil, Jawad al-Tawil and Abu-Hassan Samir, Southern Front commander Ali Karaki and his subordinates Sami Taleb Abdullar (Netzer Unit), Mohammed Nasser (Aziz Unit) and Abu Ali Reda (Badr Unit).

What is Hezbollah's structure?

◻️ Hezbollah, a Shiite Lebanese movement, has both military and political wings. The group has a significant presence in the Lebanese parliament and government.

◻️ The organization is ruled by the secretary general, who oversees the seven-member Shura Council – the movement's central decision-making authority with five sub-councils responsible for Hezbollah's major activities.

➖ Judicial Council, a court, is headed by Mohammad Yazbek

➖ Political Council, responsible for political advice to Shura, is headed by Ibrahim al-Amine al-Sayyid

➖ Executive Council, which coordinates Hezbollah's civilian activities including communications, education, health, economics and trade unions, is headed by Hashem Safieddine

➖ Parliamentary Council, which oversees the group's parliamentary and political activities, is headed by Mohammad Raad

➖ Jihad Council, which coordinates Hezbollah's military activities

◻️ Reports say that Hezbollah’s guerillas number between 40,000 and 100,000. The group's military wing includes missile, naval, logistics, intelligence and counterintelligence units, air defense, missile defense and special forces:

➖ the elite al-Hajj Radwan Force is a special operation forces unit

➖ the External Security Organisation (ESO), widely known as Unit 910, is said to be the organization's clandestine intelligence wing

◻️ Since the 1980s, Hezbollah has created a network of 15 charitable and social institutions. The main institutions are:

➖ The Martyrs' Fund (Mu'assasat al-Shahid), which provides social support to the families of killed militants

➖ "Civil defense centers", responsible for dealing with accidents and emergencies

➖ "Jihad al-Bina" responsible for restoration of destroyed housing and infrastructure, as well as social housing and road repair

➖ "Al-Imdad" — a social services charity

◻️ Hezbollah is active in Lebanon and the wider Middle East. Some reports claim there is evidence of Hezbollah operations in Africa, the Americas and Asia.

◻️ Hezbollah emerged in 1975, during Lebanon’s civil war. It has fought against Israel over decades and provided support to the Palestinian resistance.

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So long "snowflakes" and "wokeisms": Gen-Z growing more conservative in US and Europe

US pollsters have revealed a clear new trend: Gen Z-ers of all races are more conservative than older age groups, including their parents.

◻️ The latest Harvard Youth Poll has found that more 18-to-24-year-olds identified as conservative than their peers aged 25-29 (by five percentage points among men, and three percentage points among women). Moderates still represent the largest chunk in both age groups.

◻️ "It's rare for a group of Americans that young to be more conservative than their immediate predecessors," Axios wrote, commenting on the study in a September 28 report.

◻️ "Young Black voters are becoming more conservative than their parents," NPR wrote in August. The Black Voter Project’s 2024 national survey, quoted by media, indicated that the highest percentage of African Americans that say they're going to vote for Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump comes from among the 18- to 29-year-old age cohort. The age group also seems to be far less supportive of Democrats than their elder peers.

◻️ In March, US journalist Rachel Janfaza, who is studying Gen Z behavior prior to the 2024 election, wrote in her blog that "Gen Z teens are twice as likely to identify as more conservative than their parents than millennials were 20 years ago," citing new data sets from Gallup and Walton Family Foundation.

◻️ On September 4, Newsweek pondered how the right-leaning trend among the youth could affect Kamala Harris's election odds. Previously, youngsters and African Americans mostly tended to vote Democratic. Around 41 million Gen Z Americans will be eligible to vote in November.

◻️ The newspaper pointed out that the rise of the right-wing youth politics is also observed in other countries, including Germany, the UK, France, Portugal, Belgium and Finland, as well as Tunisia.

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Hezbollah will rise stronger: Nasrallah's death will strengthen resistance

The assassination of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah has sparked a wave of reactions from political figures and analysts, each expressing the significance of his legacy and the implications of his death for Lebanon and the wider region.

◻️ Samer Al-Toum, a Lebanese politician and member of the Strong Lebanon bloc, stressed that while Israel may have found a breach in Lebanon's security it would be wrong to assume that resistance has lost its strength. “After today, it is more important for the Lebanese to preserve national unity, which, before the martyrdom of Hassan Nasrallah, was incomplete, but is now the key to our security,” Al-Toum told Sputnik.

◻️ Vera Yamin, a member of the political bureau of the Al-Marada movement, spoke about Nasrallah's enduring legacy. “Even if he is physically absent, his legacy will always be considered in any future roadmaps,” she said. Yamin told Sputnik that the resistance will continue, as it always gives rise to new leaders, and now is the time to turn sorrow into justified anger against the enemy.

◻️ Jamal Wakim, a professor at the Lebanese University, dismissed the notions that internal strife could arise in Lebanon. “The opposition may rejoice, but they will not be able to change the balance,” he said. Wakim noted that Hezbollah is now facing several challenges and must find the strength to rebuild its leadership and local capabilities.

◻️ Hassan Fadaam, a member of the Iraqi parliament, declared that Nasrallah's martyrdom symbolizes victory for the resistance. He warned that Israel's aggression against Lebanon would not go unnoticed. “Iraq has committed to stand by Lebanon, and the coming days will be difficult for Israel,” Fadaam told Sputnik.

◻️ Alaya Hassan, an expert on Iran, remarked that Israel resorts to assassinations when it faces significant challenges. “The Supreme Leader of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has given a signal to all resistance movements to prepare for a new phase,” Hassan told Sputnik, adding that Hezbollah’s structure remains unshakable and the resistance will soon choose new leadership.

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Van Gogh is under attack once again. Environmental activists have thrown tomato soup on the artist's paintings at a gallery in London.

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🇬🇼 🇷🇺 Guinea-Bissau has received an invitation to the next BRICS summit

The  West African country will attend the BRICS summit that is to be held in Russia's city of Kazan in October, Guinea-Bissau's Foreign Minister Carlos Pereira told Sputnik.

Pereira noted that Guinea-Bissau's president, Umaro Sissoco Embalo, may also visit Russia this year.

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Ukraine is EU 'collapse factor' – independent journalist

Financial support for Ukraine will be a key factor in the final collapse of the viability of the European Union, independent Irish journalist Chay Bowes posted on X.

"The single biggest factor in the collapse of the EU as a viable economic and political power is a country that was never, and will never be a member. It basically reveals the reality that the EU was never about the welfare of its members," Bowes wrote.

On December 14, 2023, the European Council decided to launch negotiations on the future membership of Ukraine and Moldova in the European Union. In June 2022, the EU granted Ukraine candidate country status. However, the bloc has repeatedly said the decision is largely symbolic.

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⚫ Israel-Lebanon escalation: IDF reportedly dropped over 80 bombs to eliminate Nasrallah

⚫ Hezbollah will rise stronger: Nasrallah's death will strengthen resistance

⚫ What is Hezbollah and how is it organized?

⚫ So long "snowflakes" and "wokeisms": Gen-Z growing more conservative in US and Europe

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Underground city for the Russian military built in the Kherson region

The Russian Armed Forces have created an “underground city” in the Kherson area for the accommodation and recovery of Battlegroup Dnepr personnel.

According to the Defense Ministry, the shelters are spacious, equipped with stoves, external and internal communications, electricity, a central warning system, and water. There is also a classroom for the preparation and delivery of lectures on military disciplines.

The total length of the city's passageways and trenches is more than four kilometers, with a depth of more than four meters. The aim was to create conditions that would allow the soldiers to get away from the military routine for a while. After resting, units are sent back to the front line to carry out their duties.

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Kremlin on changes to Russia's nuclear doctrine

Adjustments to Russia's nuclear doctrine are necessary due to heightened tensions near the country's borders and the involvement of nuclear powers in the Ukraine conflict, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said.

The adjustments have already been prepared and will now be formalized, Peskov stressed.

Russia must make decisions against the backdrop of the West’s actions and be ready to implement them, the spokesman noted.

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❗️ The Israeli military has reported the elimination of Hezbollah preventive security unit commander Nabil Qaouk

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