Ali Yahya al-Zein, AKA “Karbala”. Source: Hezbollah Central Media.
On February 24, Hezbollah mourned one of its fighters without clarifying where or how he lost his life, which led to many speculations.
In a statement, the Lebanese group said that Ali Yahya al-Zein, also known as “Karbala,” from the southern town of Chehour “martyred” while carrying out “his jihadi duty.” A large formal funeral for the fighter was held in his hometown a day after the statement.
The announcement led to many speculations, especially that it came less than a week after a large Israeli attack on Syria. The main target of the attack was reportedly an installation where Syrian and Iranian officials were meeting to advance programmes to develop drones or missiles. Five people were killed and at least 15 others were wounded as a result of the attack.
Several Syrian and Lebanese news sources speculated that al-Zein was among the casualties of the attack. According to a recent report by Reuters, personnel from Hezbollah may have been present at the targeted installation.
Activists affiliated with Hezbollah were quick to deny that al-Zein was killed in Syria. According to the activists, the fighter lost his life during an operational activity in South Lebanon, the heartland of Hezbollah.
Two days before Hezbollah’s announcement, the Israeli military fired several artillery illumination shells at the southern Lebanese village of Wadi Khansa. It’s still unclear if the shelling was related to the operational activity that caused the death of al-Zein.
Hezbollah usually acknowledges any human losses caused by Israeli attacks in Lebanon or Syria before responding in kind.
The group warned Israel against targeting any of its personnel on multiple occasions in the last few years. Despite all speculations, Hezbollah’s reaction to the death of al-Zein suggests that Israel was not involved in any way.
