Australians have been warned against traveling to Lebanon after an Australian man who was killed in an Israeli air strike in south Lebanon was allegedly linked to the terrorist group Hezbollah. Ibrahim Bazzi, an Australian man, was killed, along with his Lebanese wife Shorouk and his brother Ali Bazzi, in a strike in the town of Bint Jbeil. Ali Bazzi was a known member of Hezbollah, according to local sources and security who spoke to Reuters.
The Australian government is investigating the claims of Bazzi’s links to Hezbollah, with Acting Foreign Minister Mark Dreyfus confirming the deaths of the two Australians and warning against associating with the group. He issued a statement asking Australians to leave Lebanon and advised not to travel there due to escalating conflict. The call for Australians to avoid travel comes amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas, which the Israeli military has said is set to last for many months.
Mr. Dreyfus revealed that the Australian Embassy in Beirut is ready to provide consular assistance to the family of the two Australians killed in the air strike. He also stated that the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade confirmed the deaths of the two Australian citizens into a rocket attack in southern Lebanon. The Israeli Defense Force (IDF) has claimed that Hezbollah fired from within a mosque in southern Lebanon toward Israeli civilians, which further escalated the situation in the region.