(Credit: Guilhem Dorandeu)
On average, Hezbollah fighters are 35 years old and often meet their end near their hometowns. Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah has described their deaths as occurring on ‘the road to Jerusalem’ since the conflict began between his group and the Israeli army in southern Lebanon on Oct. 8, in the aftermath of Hamas’ attack on Israel.
With a few exceptions, Hezbollah identifies its fallen fighters and includes portraits, with details such as their date and place of birth. The vast majority hail from predominantly Shiite villages in southern Lebanon, although some originate from strongholds in the Bekaa area and the southern suburbs of Beirut, which serve as the party’s stronghold in the Lebanese capital.
Below, in the map provided by L’Orient-Le Jour, the publication denotes the villages of origin for the deceased fighters, where information is available. The size of the dots indicates the number of fighters killed.
The chart reaffirms a trend previously underscored during Hezbollah’s involvement in the Syrian conflict: The bulk of its fighters primarily originate from locales close to the battlegrounds, and not elite forces specifically deployed to the area.
Among these areas, Kfar Kila, situated adjacent to the occupied Golan Heights, bears the brunt of the toll, with at least 12 of its residents killed in the fighting.
As of now, Hezbollah has formally reported the loss of 273 of its members in a press release.
In a 2017 piece published on the specialized platform WarOnTheRocks, Michael Eisenstadt and Kendall Bianchi, researchers affiliated with the Washington Institute, outlined that this communication tactic serves distinct imperatives.
Firstly, it aims to rally fighters thoroughly familiar with southern Lebanon’s topography.
Secondly, it seeks to galvanize the familial networks of these fighters. It’s not uncommon to observe that fighters who died on the same day or within proximity to each other share surnames and hail from the same village, such as the Abbouds in Deir-Ams, the al-Zeins in Shahhour, or the Aqeels in al-Jabayn.
Lastly, although the ranks of the “resistance” indeed include numerous young individuals, the age distribution among the martyrs is not particularly pronounced. The majority of those who died fell within the age range of 30 to 40 years old. The eldest was 63, while the youngest had just turned 20. Consequently, the median age of Hezbollah’s fallen fighters stands at 35.
This article was originally published in L'Orient-Le Jour. Translated by Sahar Ghoussoub.