Shafaq News/ Hezbollah formally announced, on Sunday, the death of Mohammad Afif, the party's Media Relations Chief, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Beirut.

In a statement, Hezbollah said, "We mourn a great media leader and a martyr on the path to Jerusalem, taken from us in a heinous Zionist criminal attack."

A Founding Member of Hezbollah

Mohammad Afif was among the founding members of Hezbollah. His media career with the organization began in 1983, during which he maintained close ties with the party's former Secretary-General, Abbas al-Mousawi, assassinated by Israel in 1992, and with Hassan Nasrallah, assassinated on September 27, 2024.

Afif was appointed as Hezbollah's Media Relations Chief in 2014 and also served as a media advisor to Nasrallah. His contributions extended to managing news and political programming at Al-Manar, Hezbollah’s official news channel. Afif played a key role in overseeing media coverage during Israel’s war on Lebanon in July 2006.

Details of the Assassination

Afif was assassinated on November 17, 2024, in an Israeli airstrike targeting the densely populated area of Ras al-Nabaa in Beirut. The Israeli Army Radio reported that Afif was the primary target of the operation.

The Lebanese Ministry of Public Health announced that the bombing resulted in the death of three persons including a woman, and the injury of 14 others including two children, bringing the total toll of casualties, since October 2023, to over 3,365 deaths and approximately 14,344 injuries.

Observers suggested that targeting Afif reflects “a shift in Israeli strategy towards targeting non-military Hezbollah leaders to increase pressure on the group.” This airstrike follows a series of continuous attacks on Beirut’s southern suburb (Dahyeh), where areas like Haret Hreik and Burj al-Barajneh have been heavily bombed by Israeli warplanes.