ALBAWABA - As 2024 comes to an end, this article highlights some of the major events that hit the Middle East during the year:
Saleh al-Arouri Assassination (January 2)
Saleh al-Arouri, a prominent Hamas leader, was killed in a drone attack near Dahiyeh, Beirut's southern suburbs and a Hezbollah stronghold. al-Arouri was a deputy head of Hamas' political bureau and a co-founder of the group's military branch, Qassam Brigades. He was living in exile in Lebanon after serving 15 years in an Israeli prison.
X (Saleh Al Arouri)
Wad An Nora massacre (June 5)
The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) launched two attacks on the village of Wad Al-Noora in Al-Jazira state at approximately 5:00 on June 5, 2024, resulting in the killing of at least 100 civilians. The RSF besieged the village and began firing, which led to the horrifying massacre.
The RSF recorded themselves employing heavy bombardment, heavy artillery fire, dual cannons, and quadruple cannons on the village after stationing at the Al-Nala office on the outskirts of the village, according to reports from Civilian Resistance Committees.
(Photo by Amaury Falt-Brown / AFP)
Ismail Hanyieh’s assassination (July 31)
Hamas’s political chief Ismail Haniyeh, along with one of his bodyguards, were killed in a precise strike targeting their residence in Tehran, Iran, after attending the inauguration of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian.
(Photo by Atta KENARE / AFP)
Beirut Pager Explosions (September 17 & 18)
A series of mass explosions struck the Lebanese capital Beirut over the course of two days, as thousands of Pager devices, used by Hezbollah affiliates, were remotely denoted, killing 37+ people and wounding 3,000+.
The timing of the two incidents has left many in Lebanon concerned about their usage of technological devices as well as the country's security status.
The attack apparently targeted mobile phones, computers, solar energy cells, and walkie-talkie radios purchased around the same period - around five months before the exploding pagers.
(Photo by AFP)
Hassan Nasrallah Assassination (September 27)
The Israeli army had carried out a series of airstrikes on Hezbollah's headquarters in Beirut's southern suburb targeting Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah. Israeli Army Radio added that F-35 fighter planes knocked out bunkers with 2,000-pound bombs.
Following speculations surrounding his fate, Hezbollah officially released a statement mourning the killing of its secretary-general Hassan Nasrallah, in a series of strikes on a residential block in the southern suburbs of Beirut.
(Shutterstock)
ICC Arrest Warrant Against Netanyahu and Gallant (21 November)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant have both been the subject of arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC).
The court believes that there are sufficient grounds to assume that Gallant and Netanyahu purposefully and willfully denied the civilian population in Gaza essential survival items such as food, water, medicine and medical supplies, fuel, and electricity.
(Photo by Alberto PIZZOLI and ABIR SULTAN / various sources / AFP)
Lebanon Ceasefire (27 November)
The agreement between Israel and Hezbollah aims to put an end to more than a year of hostilities that began on October 8, 2023, when Hezbollah began firing strikes at Israel, vowing it would continue as long as Israel waged war on the people of Gaza.
Since October 2023, Israel has uprooted 1.2 million people in Lebanon, killing 3,768, the majority of whom died in the last two months.
(Photo by Anwar AMRO / AFP)
Operation Deterrence of Aggression in Syria (29 November)
Northern Syria experienced significant upheaval as opposition forces launched the ambitious Operation Deterrence of Aggression, which targeted Assad regime-held territories in Aleppo, Idlib, and Hama.
This coordinated campaign considered one of the most major military efforts since the start of the Syrian crisis, has resulted in rapid territorial advances, the collapse of key regime strongholds, and fresh hope for opposition backers.
Opposition forces want to retake displaced areas and establish governance in freed zones through coordinated military, political, and media efforts.
(Photo by Aref TAMMAWI / AFP)
