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A6 WORLD NEWS
Wednesday 10 July 2024
An Israeli strike in Syria kills a former bodyguard of Lebanon’s

Hezbollah leader, official says

By BASSEM MROUE and KA- tier have been displaced in
REEM CHEHAYEB the monthslong war.
Associated Press For years, Israel has
BEIRUT (AP) — An Israeli launched frequent strikes
strike in Syria on Tuesday on targets in Syria linked to
killed a former bodyguard Iran, its powerful regional
of the leader of the Leba- backer, but rarely acknowl-
nese militant group Hez- edges them. The strikes
bollah, an official with the have escalated over the
group said. An Israeli man past five months against
and woman were killed in a the backdrop of the war in
retaliatory Hezbollah strike Gaza and ongoing clashes
on Israel. between Hezbollah and
Hours earlier, an Israeli Israeli forces on the Leba-
drone hit a car in Syria near non-Israel border.
the border with Lebanon, Hezbollah’s attacks have
according to a war monitor gradually escalated, with
and the Syrian pro-govern- the group introducing new
ment radio Sham FM. The weapons. Hezbollah main-
Hezbollah official spoke on tains it will stop its attacks
condition of anonymity in once there is a cease-fire in
line with regulations. Gaza. Israel has also struck
The Britain-based pro-op- Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, right, escorted by his bodyguard Yasser Nemr deeper into Lebanon.
position war monitor Syr- Qranbish, waves to his supporters during a rally, in Beirut’s southern suburbs, Lebanon, on Sept. The targeting of Qranbish
22, 2006.
ian Observatory for Human Associated Press appears to be part of an
Rights said two Hezbollah ongoing Israeli military strat-
members in the car were mourned his death on so- rescue service said they ern Israel by the Palestinian egy of taking out key Hez-
killed in the strike, while a cial media, calling him the were civilians. militant Hamas group that bollah operatives aimed at
Syrian driver was critically “shield of the Sayyed,” in Qranbish had been mainly rules the Gaza Strip. Hamas weakening its military ca-
wounded. There was no reference to his tenure as a active in Syria over the re- is an ally of Hezbollah. pabilities “before any ma-
immediate comment from bodyguard of Hezbollah’s cent years and involved in Since then, Israeli airstrikes jor escalation that might”
Syrian authorities or from leader Hassan Nasrallah. weapons shipments for He- on Lebanon have killed follow, said Charles Lister of
the Israeli military. Later Tuesday, Hezbollah zbollah, said an official with over 450 people, mostly the Washington-based Mid-
Hezbollah later identified announced that in retali- an Iran-backed group, who Hezbollah fighters but also dle East Institute think tank.
the militant as Yasser Nemr ation for the killing, it fired also spoke on condition of more than 80 civilians and “That it occurred in Syria will
Qranbish, although it did tens of Katyusha rockets anonymity to disclose the non-combatants. On the Is- serve as another potent re-
not disclose the circum- targeting an Israeli military information. raeli side, 17 soldiers and 13 minder of Israel’s clear pen-
stances of his death as is base in the Golan Heights. Hezbollah launched at- civilians have been killed etration of the ‘resistance
standard practice for He- Israeli police said in a state- tacks against Israel after since the war in Gaza be- axis’ there,” Lister told The
zbollah combatants who ment that a man and a the outbreak of the Israel- gan. Tens of thousands of Associated Press, referring
are not in leadership roles. woman were killed in the Hamas war in Gaza on Oct. people on both sides of the to the regional network of
Hezbollah supporters rocket barrage. The MADA 7 with the attack on south- tense Lebanon-Israel fron- Iran-backed groups.q

Mexico’s efforts to seize U.S.-bound fentanyl drop sharply, while

seizures of meth soar

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Even as Mexican-made fentanyl continues to flood into the United
States, Mexico’s efforts to seize the drug have declined dramatically, according to fig-
ures released Tuesday by the Defense Department.
Figures for the first half of 2024 show that Mexican federal forces seized only 286 pounds
(130 kilograms) of fentanyl nationwide between January and June, down 94% from the
5,135 pounds (2,329 kilograms) seized in 2023.
The synthetic opioid has been blamed for about 70,000 overdose deaths annually in the
United States, and U.S. officials have tried to step up efforts to seize it as it comes over
the border, often in the form of counterfeit pills made in Mexico.
But rather than join in the effort, Mexico’s Army and National Guard appeared to have
refocused their attention far more toward seizing methamphetamines, which are much
more widely consumed domestically in Mexico than fentanyl.
Mexico seized a record of over 400 tons of meth in 2023, more than 12 times what it
seized in 2022. That pace appeared to continue in the first half of 2024, with 168 tons of
methamphetamines seized.
While Mexican meth is exported widely to the United States and also causes huge
This photo released by Mexico’s National Security Commission
shows bags of illegal drugs, including 100 pounds (45.5 addiction problems there unlike fentanyl, a huge amount of meth is also sold inside
kilograms) of fentanyl, according to authorities, inside a sports Mexico.
utility vehicle after police stopped the car for a missing front Mexico’s Defense Department did not explain why seizures of the two drugs have
license plate near Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico, Jan. 25, changed so dramatically. Some observers say the uptick in meth seizures may be the
2018. result of increasing internal disputes between the “Mayitos” and “Chapitos” factions of
Associated Press the Sinaloa cartel, the largest producer of meth in Mexico.q