Nabil Qaouk
{{Short description|Lebanese cleric and politician (1964–2024)}}
{{pp-extended|small=yes}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2022}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name = Nabil Qaouk
| native_name = {{nobold|نبيل قاووق}}
| image = Sheikh Nabil Qaouk (cropped).jpg
| image_size =
| caption = Qaouk in 2010
| office = Deputy Head of Hezbollah's Executive Council
| term_start = 2010
| term_end = 28 September 2024
| birth_name =
| birth_date = {{birth date|df=y|1964|05|20}}{{Cite web |title=Counter Terrorism Designations and Designations Updates; Iran-related Designation and Designations Updates; Foreign Interference in U.S. Election Designations; Non-Proliferation Designation Update; Syria Designation Update |url=https://ofac.treasury.gov/recent-actions/20201022 |access-date=2024-09-28 |website=Office of Foreign Assets Control |language=en}}
| birth_place = Ebba, Lebanon
| death_date = {{death date and age|df=y|2024|09|28|1964|05|20}}
| death_place = Dahieh, Lebanon
| nationality = Lebanese
| death_manner = Assassination by airstrike
| alma_mater =
| occupation = Politician, cleric
| years_active =
| organization =
| net_worth =
| spouse =
| children = 6
| parents =
| signature =
| website =
| party = Hezbollah
| native_name_lang = ar
}}
Nabil Qaouk ({{langx|ar|نبيل قاووق}}; 20 May 1964 – 28 September 2024) was a Lebanese cleric and politician who served as the deputy head of Hezbollah's executive council and the commander of Hezbollah's "preventive security unit".{{Cite web |last=Mukherjee |first=Srishti |date=2024-09-28 |title=Israel Air Force Suspected To Have Eliminated Vice President Of Hezbollah's Executive Council |url=https://www.newsx.com/world/israel-air-force-suspected-to-have-eleminated-vice-president-of-hezbollahs-executive-council/ |access-date=2024-09-29 |website=NewsX World |language=en-US}} He was designated as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist by the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).
Biography
{{Hezbollah}}
= Early life and education =
Nabil Qaouk was born in the village of Ebba in Lebanon's Nabatieh Governorate. His spiritual studies took place in Qom, Iran, where he was influenced by Shia ideology. His military training in Iran aligned with Hezbollah and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC){{cite news |last=Koppel |first=Ted |date=21 July 2006 |title=Gifts for Iran: Look what spreading democracy can do |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/21/opinion/21iht-edkoppel.2260766.html |accessdate=18 January 2013 |newspaper=The New York Times}}
= Career =
Qaouk was one of the top officers of Hezbollah in Southern Lebanon, a region that has been a focal point in Hezbollah's confrontations.{{Cite web |date=2024-01-25 |title=Treasury Targets High-Ranking Hizballah Officials |url=https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/sm1161 |access-date=2024-01-30 |website=U.S. Department of the Treasury |language=en}}{{Cite web |date=2020-10-23 |title=US sanctions 2 senior members of Lebanon's Hezbollah |url=https://apnews.com/article/iran-lebanon-9782afef819694aa581379900def330e |access-date=2024-01-30 |website=AP News |language=en}} He was both a general and deputy head of the executive council, attesting to his influence in both political and military factions of Hezbollah.{{cite news |author=Clancy Chassay in Beirut |date=19 August 2006 |title=Stand alongside Hizbullah, Lebanon's army tells troops |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2006/aug/19/syria.israelandthepalestinians |accessdate=17 January 2013 |work=The Guardian}}
On 22 October 2020, Qaouk was designated as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist by the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). This designation implies U.S. government sanctions against him due to alleged involvement in terrorism-related activities.
= Attacks =
During the 2006 Lebanon War, Qaouk's offices in Tyre were targeted by the Israeli Air Force (IAF). This activity was part of the Israeli military's broader response to Hezbollah's armed provocations, including the kidnapping of Israeli soldiers and the launch of rockets into Israeli territory.{{cite news |date=27 July 2006 |title=IAF strikes Lebanese army base |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3281969,00.html |accessdate=18 January 2013 |publisher=Ynet}}
= Personal life and death =
Qaouk was married and had six children. He was killed in an Israeli air strike in Beirut on 28 September 2024.{{Cite web |date=2024-09-28 |title=Hezbollah confirms a 7th top commander was killed in Israeli strikes in recent days |url=https://apnews.com/article/israel-lebanon-hezbollah-gaza-09-29-2024-4696e581e28d8c747f017221f2cf420f|access-date=2024-09-29 |website=Associated Press |language=en}}{{Cite web |date=2024-09-28 |title=Israel-Hamas war latest: Hezbollah confirms the death of another high-ranking official |url=https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/israel-hamas-war-latest-israeli-airstrike-northeast-lebanon-114324805|access-date=2024-09-29 |website=ABC News |language=en}}{{Cite web |date=2024-09-28 |title=Israel Eliminates Senior Hezbollah Intelligence Operative In Airstrike In Lebanon's Beirut |url=https://www.news18.com/world/top-hezbollah-leader-nabil-qaouk-targeted-in-israeli-airstrike-lebanon-beirut-dahieh-latest-news-9067575.html |access-date=2024-09-29 |website=News18 |language=en}}
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Gaza war}}
{{Targeted killing by Israel}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Qaouk, Nabil}}
Category:People from Nabatieh District
Category:Lebanese Shia clerics
Category:Assassinated Hezbollah members
Category:Deaths by Israeli airstrikes during the Israel–Hamas war
Category:People killed in the Israel–Hamas war
Category:People killed by Israeli security forces
Category:Targeted killing by Israel
Category:Politicians assassinated in 2024
Category:Individuals designated as terrorists by the United States government
Category:Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List
Category:20th-century Lebanese people
Category:21st-century Lebanese people
Category:Military personnel killed in the Israel–Hezbollah conflict (2023–present)