Lebanese Sources Accuse Mossad of Killing Hezbollah-Linked Money Changer

A picture of Mohammad Surur is circulating on social media
A picture of Mohammad Surur is circulating on social media
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Lebanese Sources Accuse Mossad of Killing Hezbollah-Linked Money Changer

A picture of Mohammad Surur is circulating on social media
A picture of Mohammad Surur is circulating on social media

Lebanese sources are accusing Israel’s Mossad of killing a Lebanese man associated with Hezbollah. He has been on the US sanctions list since 2019 for allegedly moving money from Iran’s Revolutionary Guard to Hamas.
The victim, Mohammad Surur, was found dead in Beirut two days after he went missing. Investigators suspect Mossad’s involvement. Surur was lured to a rented villa by an unidentified woman.
The body of Surur was discovered Tuesday, murdered in the Mansourieh area in the Metn district north of the Lebanese capital, Beirut.
His body showed signs of torture before being shot.
Surur, who worked for Hezbollah-linked financial institutions, was shot multiple times while carrying a large sum of money.
A security source told Asharq Al-Awsat that “the case is highly dangerous, and what has been revealed so far is just the tip of the iceberg.”
Asserting that it was “not a robbery,” the source revealed that the signs of torture on the victim’s body indicate he was subjected to interrogation before being killed.
Security agencies and forensic evidence teams have initiated investigations to uncover the circumstances of the crime following the forensic examination of the body.
A Lebanese security source told Asharq Al-Awsat that preliminary forensic investigations revealed Surur was shot three times, but another forensic doctor was tasked due to conflicting information.
Forensic evidence teams are working to identify the type of weapon used and the exact time of death, the source affirmed.
Moreover, the source pointed out that the data suggests the crime was executed professionally by skilled individuals recruited through specific channels who meticulously monitored and tracked Surur.
Surur’s family is demanding the truth and accountability. They had lost contact with him a week before his death.
Lebanese MPs urged authorities to find the culprits. The US sanctioned Surur for allegedly transferring money from Iran to Hamas via Hezbollah.
US officials recently visited Beirut, urging Lebanon to stop money transfers to Hamas.



Iran’s Supreme Leader Says Syrian Youth Will Resist Incoming Government

A defaced portrait of ousted Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is seen in Damascus, Syria, 18 December 2024 (issued 22 December 2024). (EPA)
A defaced portrait of ousted Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is seen in Damascus, Syria, 18 December 2024 (issued 22 December 2024). (EPA)
TT

Iran’s Supreme Leader Says Syrian Youth Will Resist Incoming Government

A defaced portrait of ousted Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is seen in Damascus, Syria, 18 December 2024 (issued 22 December 2024). (EPA)
A defaced portrait of ousted Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is seen in Damascus, Syria, 18 December 2024 (issued 22 December 2024). (EPA)

Iran's supreme leader on Sunday said that young Syrians will resist the new government emerging after the overthrow of President Bashar sl-Assad as he again accused the United States and Israel of sowing chaos in the country.

Iran had provided crucial support to Assad throughout Syria's nearly 14-year civil war, which erupted after he launched a violent crackdown on a popular uprising against his family's decades-long rule. Syria had long served as a key conduit for Iranian aid to Lebanon's armed group Hezbollah.

Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei said in an address on Sunday that the “young Syrian has nothing to lose" and suffers from insecurity following Assad's fall.

“What can he do? He should stand with strong will against those who designed and those who implemented the insecurity," Khamenei said. “God willing, he will overcome them.”

He accused the United States and Israel of plotting against Assad's government in order to seize resources, saying: “Now they feel victory, the Americans, the Zionist regime and those who accompanied them.”

Iran and its armed proxies in the region have suffered a series of major setbacks over the past year, with Israel battering Hamas in Gaza and landing heavy blows on Hezbollah before they agreed to a ceasefire in Lebanon last month.

Khamenei denied that such groups were proxies of Iran, saying they fought because of their own beliefs and that Tehran did not depend on them. “If one day we plan to take action, we do not need proxy force,” he said.