Ali Tabatbay has spent the past year rebuilding the organization following the war. According to the Wall Street Journal, the man who helped establish the Radwan Force has managed to replace more than 2,500 militants the organization lost. Recently, he has also tried to introduce a new system that will prevent the loss of competence following the assassinations.

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Over the past year, since the ceasefire in the north came into effect, Hezbollah Chief of Staff Haitham Ali Tabatbay has been busy rehabilitating and rebuilding the terrorist organization. According to a report in the Wall Street Journal, this was the main reason for his elimination earlier this week in an IDF raid on a safe house in Beirut's Hadahiya neighborhood, in an operation dubbed"Black Friday."

The person who was designated number 2 in the terrorist organization had many roles, but the Journal emphasized his importance to Hezbollah's efforts not to disarm - despite the Lebanese government's decision on the matter. As part of the ceasefire agreement with Israel, Lebanon must disarm Hezbollah in the south of the country, south of the Litani River, and later the organization is supposed to give up its weapons north of the river as well. However, the terrorist organization opposes this, claiming that it needs the weapons to"protect Lebanon's sovereignty." View gallery Hezbollah's announcement on the assassination of Tabatbay

As part of the refusal, and in parallel with the IDF's relentless activity in Lebanon, Hezbollah is constantly working to smuggle weapons and at the same time trying to recruit operatives to its ranks. Tabatbay was described as a"crucial" component in these efforts. As one of the most senior figures remaining in the organization's ranks after a series of assassinations in the war, he assumed responsibility for Hezbollah's military activity.

The thousands of terrorists who were recruited - and the new method he implemented

Officials in the Arab world said that Tabatabaei focused on strengthening the organization's forces in southern Lebanon, precisely where Hezbollah is supposed to disarm, and ordered the terrorists to operate in small cells - with the aim of improving their chances of survival in a future conflict with Israel.

During the war, Hezbollah was severely beaten, and in addition to the many senior figures who were eliminated - including the organization's Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah - the terrorist organization also lost more than 2,500 armed operatives who participated in the fighting in various ways. According to officials in Israel and the Arab countries, Tabatbay's efforts were successful - and the terrorist organization managed to replace the thousands of operatives it lost in the war.

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Tabatbay's last mission, which he was engaged in at the time of his assassination, also directly relates to Hezbollah's reconstruction efforts: Arab officials told the Wall Street Journal that he worked to implement a new systemic method within the organization's ranks - according to which unit commanders would train replacements for themselves, who would be able to take command of the unit in the event that they were eliminated. The goal of the move is to prevent a situation in which units lose their competence as soon as their commanders are eliminated, as happened to the organization during the war.

Tabatbay's coffin at a funeral in Dahiyya (Photo: REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir)

Before returning to Lebanon, according to the US administration, Tabatbay commanded, among other things, Hezbollah's special forces in Syria and Yemen, as part of"a major effort by Hezbollah to provide training, materials, and manpower to support its activities to cause instability in the region." According to the Alma Center, which deals with Israel's security challenges in the north, Tabatbay survived an Israeli assassination attempt in the Quneitra province of southern Syria in 2015, in an attack near the village of Hader. It was that attack that caused him to move to Yemen, where he helped train the forces of the Houthi militia, which, like Hezbollah, is also supported by Iran.

Although Hezbollah has not responded militarily - so far - to the elimination of Tabatbay, Israeli and Arab intelligence indicates that the terrorist organization is continuing its reconstruction efforts, which include replenishing its stock of rockets and anti-tank missiles, along with various ammunition and shells. The Journal noted that some of the weapons arrive in Lebanon in shipments by sea, and are also smuggled through Syria - although Israel has disrupted some of the smuggling routes. It also states that the terrorist organization is also restoring some of its capabilities through its own production of ammunition.

On October 26, 2016, the US declared him a specially designated international terrorist, by presidential order, and the State Department even offered a $5 million reward for information on him. According to Hezbollah's statement, Tabatbay was 57 years old when he died and joined the ranks of the organization when it was founded, before he was even 18. Later, he helped establish the"Radwan Force," whose purpose, among other things, was to invade the Galilee settlements.

Tabatbay was killed alongside four other Hezbollah operatives and was buried yesterday in the Hadahiya district of Beirut. Secretary-General Naim Qassem, who has also not spoken at all since the assassination, was absent from the funeral. He is expected to speak this Friday at 6:00 PM, at an event in honor of Tabatbay and the others killed in the attack. Hezbollah did not explicitly threaten a response, and a source close to the terrorist organization told the French news agency AFP about the dispute in the organization:"There are two opposing opinions within the organization. There are those who want to respond to the assassination and those who prefer to avoid it. For now, the organization's leadership prefers the diplomatic path." No comments have been published for this article, be the first to comment.