Israel Uncovers New Hezbollah Route to Transfer Weapons from Iran to Lebanon

A picture shows the Syrian flag swaying in the wind at the Damascus International airport in the Syrian capital on October 1, 2020. (AFP via Getty Images)
A picture shows the Syrian flag swaying in the wind at the Damascus International airport in the Syrian capital on October 1, 2020. (AFP via Getty Images)
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Israel Uncovers New Hezbollah Route to Transfer Weapons from Iran to Lebanon

A picture shows the Syrian flag swaying in the wind at the Damascus International airport in the Syrian capital on October 1, 2020. (AFP via Getty Images)
A picture shows the Syrian flag swaying in the wind at the Damascus International airport in the Syrian capital on October 1, 2020. (AFP via Getty Images)

Israel accused on Friday a senior official in the Hezbollah party of opening a new route to transfer weapons from Iran to Lebanon.

Israeli military spokesman Avichay Adraee said that Rida Hashem Safieddine was overseeing the route.

Safieddine is the husband of Zeinab, the daughter of slain Iranian Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani, who was killed in a US drone strike near Baghdad airport in 2020.

He is also the son of Hashem Safieddine, head of the Hezbollah executive council and considered the most senior official in the party after its leader Hassan Nasrallah.

He also happens to be Nasrallah's cousin.

His uncle is Abdullah Safieddine, Hezbollah's representative in Iran.

Adraee said Safieddine Sr. was probably exploiting his family relations, his high rank, and Lebanese infrastructure to help his son transfer "strategic" weapons from Iran to Hezbollah.

In a series of tweets, he added that Hashem Safieddine was using his position to communicate with Hezbollah supporters and follow up on the party's activities among the Shiite population in Lebanon. He was also communicating with prominent figures in Lebanon and managing media and communications.

He said that since Zeinab lives in Iran, her husband, Rida, who is based in Lebanon, often visits her several times a month.

He uses his trips for military purposes and meets with officials in Iran to coordinate the transfer of weapons on civilian flights from Iran to Damascus International Airport, "putting the lives of passengers in imminent danger, just as the terrorist Hezbollah does when it exploits the Lebanese state and citizens to serve Iran."

Adraee warned that the Israeli army will continue to monitor all of Hezbollah's attempts at threatening the Israeli state's security and that it will do everything it needs to protect itself and its citizens.



After Putin Envoy’s US Talks, Kremlin Says Putin and Trump Have No Plans to Speak

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with Russian Culture Minister Olga Lyubimova, at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, 04 April 2025. (EPA/Vyacheslav Prokofyev / Sputnik / Kremlin Pool / Pool)
Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with Russian Culture Minister Olga Lyubimova, at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, 04 April 2025. (EPA/Vyacheslav Prokofyev / Sputnik / Kremlin Pool / Pool)
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After Putin Envoy’s US Talks, Kremlin Says Putin and Trump Have No Plans to Speak

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with Russian Culture Minister Olga Lyubimova, at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, 04 April 2025. (EPA/Vyacheslav Prokofyev / Sputnik / Kremlin Pool / Pool)
Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with Russian Culture Minister Olga Lyubimova, at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, 04 April 2025. (EPA/Vyacheslav Prokofyev / Sputnik / Kremlin Pool / Pool)

The Kremlin said on Friday that Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump had no plans to talk after a visit to Washington by Putin's investment envoy as wider negotiations over a ceasefire in Ukraine appeared stalled.

NBC News reported on Thursday that Trump's inner circle is advising him not to speak to Putin again until the Russian leader commits to a full ceasefire in Ukraine, something Putin has said he is open to in principle, but only if a long list of conditions are met.

Kirill Dmitriev, Putin's investment envoy, said on Thursday that he saw a "positive dynamic" in relations between Moscow and Washington after holding two days of meetings in Washington, but said more meetings were needed to sort out differences.

His visit came as a US-brokered agreement for Russia and Ukraine to stop striking each other's energy infrastructure appeared to be faltering, with Moscow and Kyiv repeatedly accusing each other of violating it. Reuters could not verify to what extent it was being respected.

Asked on Friday whether Putin and Trump would now speak by phone, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters:

"No, there are no plans for the next few days. There is nothing in the schedule for now."

Peskov said Dmitriev's visit was a cause for "cautious optimism", however. He also echoed Dmitriev's comments that Russia could engage in talks around security guarantees for Ukraine, although he said the subject was very complex.

The two sides have engaged in a flurry of diplomacy over Ukraine since Trump returned to office in January, promising a quick end to the conflict and a restoration of ties with Russia.

But Russia this week said it could not accept US proposals on Ukraine, "in their current form", because they did not address core issues that Moscow says are at the root of the conflict.

Trump previously said he was "pissed off" with Putin due to remarks he had made about Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.

Trump has spoken of imposing sanctions on countries that buy Russian oil if he feels Moscow is blocking a peace deal on Ukraine. In an announcement of global tariffs on Thursday he did include Russia, which is already heavily sanctioned.