Israel is not allowing a search for senior Hezbollah leader Hashem Safieddine to progress after it bombed Beirut's southern suburbs on Thursday, a Hezbollah official said, noting the group would only announce his fate when the search concluded.

Hezbollah’s likely new leader Hashem Safieddine is like his late predecessor, Hassan Nasrallah, a staunch critic of Israel and the West, with deep alliances with the Iranian leadership.

A cousin and possible successor to Hassan Nasrallah, the Hezbollah leader assassinated by Israel, Safieddine joined the group soon after it was formed and rose quickly up its ranks.