Hassan al-Laqqis
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{{Short description|Lebanese militant leader (d. 2013)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2025}}
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{{Infobox officeholder
| name = Hassan al-Laqqis
{{lang|ar|حسان اللقيس}}
| image =
| birth_date = 1970
| birth_place =
| death_date = {{Death date and age|2013|12|4|1970|df=y}}
| death_place = Beirut, Lebanon
| nationality = Lebanese
| rank = Military Commander
}}
Hassan Hawlo al-Laqqis ({{langx|ar|حسان اللقيس}};1970 – 4 December 2013) was Hezbollah's chief logistics officer and military commander in Lebanon. Laqqis was assassinated when two gunmen shot him four times in the head and neck inside his car from close range around midnight of 3–4 December 2013.
Activities
{{Hezbollah}}
Laqqis served most of his life in the group's military service since its first days of inception in the 1980s until his death. He was among the top commanders of Hezbollah in the 2006 second Lebanon war against Israel.{{cite news|title=Lebanon: Resistance Air Defense Commander Assassinated|url=http://english.al-akhbar.com/content/lebanon-resistance-air-defense-commander-assassinated|accessdate=9 December 2013|newspaper=Al Akhbar|date=5 December 2013|author=Radwan Mortada|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180621194132/https://english.al-akhbar.com/content/lebanon-resistance-air-defense-commander-assassinated|archive-date=21 June 2018|url-status=dead}} At the time of his killing, he served in several battles inside Syria.{{cite news|url=http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/23051d1e-5cf6-11e3-a558-00144feabdc0.html#axzz2mYF7fGcT|author1=Martin Chulov|author2=Harriet Sherwood|title=Hezbollah suffers heaviest blow in years as commander is shot dead in Beirut|work=The Guardian|date=4 December 2013|accessdate=5 December 2013}} He was alleged to be the group's logistics and procurement chief. He was very close to the group's leader Hassan Nasrallah and also, reportedly lost a son during the 2006 Lebanon War.{{cite news|title=Hizbollah commander Hassan al-Laqqis assassinated in Beirut|url=http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/23051d1e-5cf6-11e3-a558-00144feabdc0.html#axzz2n0OyRDqj|accessdate=9 December 2013|newspaper=Financial Times|location=London|date=4 December 2013|agency=Reuters}}
Matthew Levitt, author of the recent book Hezbollah: The Global Footprint of Lebanon’s Party of God and a senior fellow and director of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy's Stein Program on Counter-terrorism and Intelligence stated that there is "no question, he is very important" and that he was Hezbollah's chief military Arms Procurement and Strategic Weapons officer. He believes that Laqqis was killed by Israel's intelligence service Mossad.{{cite news|url=http://www.jpost.com/Diplomacy-and-Politics/Who-killed-Laqqis-and-why-334030|author=Ariel Ben Solomon|title=Who killed top Hezbollah military commander Laqqis and why?|work=The Jerusalem Post|date=5 December 2013|accessdate=5 December 2013}}
Assassination and funeral
Laqqis was killed in an assassination when reportedly a number of gunmen shot him in the head in his car from close range as he arrived at his home at around midnight of 3–4 December 2013 local Beirut time in the Hadath region, a suburb of the Lebanese capital Beirut. He was rushed to the hospital but died there a few hours later.{{cite web|url=http://www.france24.com/en/20131204-hezbollah-commander-killed-beirut-israel/|title=Hezbollah says commander 'assassinated' near Beirut|work=France 24|date=4 December 2013|access-date=17 December 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190315033413/https://www.france24.com/en/20131204-hezbollah-commander-killed-beirut-israel|archive-date=15 March 2019|url-status=dead}}
A Lebanese Sunni militant group, "Ahrar al-Sunna Baalbek Brigade" ({{Langx|ar|لواء أحرار السنة بعلبك}} ), believed to be a Lebanon-based Al-Qaeda-linked group from the Abdullah Azzam Brigades,{{cite web|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-lebanon-hezbollah-killing-idUSBRE9B306S20131204|title=Hezbollah says commander killed in Beirut, blames Israel|author=Laila Bassam and Dominic Evans|date=4 December 2013|agency=Reuters}} claimed responsibility for the attack in a message on Twitter. Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah stated this group "is not a fictitious name... This group exists ... It has its leadership ... and I am convinced it is linked to General Intelligence Presidency."John Hall. (4 December 2013). [https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/israel-denies-claims-of-professional-murder-of-hezbollah-commander-hassan-allaqqis-outside-his-beirut-home-8982298.html Israel denies claims of 'professional' murder of Hezbollah commander Hassan al-Laqqis outside his Beirut home] The Independent. Retrieved 9 December 2013. Hezbollah has also claimed Israel was responsible for the assassination.{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-lebanon-hezbollah-killing-idUSBRE9B306S20131204|author1=Laila Bassam|author2=Dominic Evans|title=Hezbollah says commander killed in Beirut, blames Israel|agency=Reuters|date=4 December 2013|accessdate=4 December 2013}} Israel has denied any involvement in the matter.{{citation needed|date=December 2021}}
His funeral was held in Baalbek on 4 December 2013.{{cite news|author=Ibrahim Al Amin|title=Lebanon: Hezbollah Will Respond to the Assassination|url=http://english.al-akhbar.com/content/lebanon-hezbollah-will-respond-assassination|accessdate=9 December 2013|newspaper=Al Akhbar|date=5 December 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160326002131/http://english.al-akhbar.com/content/lebanon-hezbollah-will-respond-assassination|archive-date=26 March 2016|url-status=dead}}