“The killing of Hassan Nasrallah, Hezbollah’s leader, by an Israeli airstrike in Lebanon will not fundamentally alter the course of this conflict. Decapitation strikes against terrorist leaders almost never result in an organization’s collapse. Collapse is especially unlikely when the targeted organization is old, entrenched, and far-reaching, as in the case of Hezbollah. Killing Nasrallah does not substitute for having a theory of victory for how this conflict ends.
“Nasrallah’s death doesn’t change anything for the United States either, except that it further complicates American efforts to negotiate a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah to prevent more bloodshed. The U.S. has no direct national security interest in this conflict. Washington should work more on staying out of the region’s troubles and less on trying to manage it with arms and troop deployments.”
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Rosemary
Kelanic
Director, Middle East Program
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