Mohammad Afif, Hezbollah’s Media Relations Chief, was martyred on Sunday following an Israeli airstrike targeting a building belonging to the Arab Socialist Baath Party in Beirut’s Ras al-Nabaa area.

Ali Hijazi, Secretary-General of the Baath Party in Lebanon, confirmed Afif’s presence in the building at the time of the strike. Hijazi stated that the attack aimed to silence the voice of the resistance, adding that Afif was a media figure and not a military commander.

“He did not lead a military unit in Hezbollah; rather, he was the head of a media unit,” Hijazi clarified.

The airstrike also claimed the lives of at least five people, according to local sources. Hijazi revealed that the building, owned and used by the Baath Party, was frequently the site of meetings during the current conflict, a fact well-known in the region. He added that threats against Afif had been issued publicly on various media platforms before the attack.

Hijazi condemned the targeting of media figures as a tactic to undermine the resistance, stating: “We stand with the resistance, and this resistance will prevail, whether we survive or not.”

Hijazi also disclosed that a detainee accused of collaborating with Israeli forces had confessed two months ago to being tasked with photographing the Baath Party’s headquarters.

Hussein al-Jishi, a member of Lebanon’s Loyalty to the Resistance Bloc, criticized the airstrike, describing it as an act of desperation by Israel. He argued that targeting a media spokesperson underscored Israel's inability to make gains on the battlefield.

“There is nothing brave or heroic in such actions,” he remarked, accusing Israel of attempting to pressure the resistance’s popular base through aggression. (ILKHA)