Maariv: US-Israeli concerned about leakage of secrets of an unexploded bomb in the southern suburbs of Beirut to Russia or China
The United States has issued an urgent request to the Lebanese government to ensure that an unexploded Israeli aerial bomb in the southern suburbs of the capital Beirut is transferred to its possession, fearing that it will fall into the hands of Russia or China and they will be able to access advanced military technology.
The Israeli Maariv newspaper quoted sources as saying, “The talk is about a GBU-39B smart glide bomb manufactured by the American company Boeing, which was used by the Israeli Air Force in the raid that targeted Haitham Ali Tabatabai, who is presented as Hezbollah’s chief of staff, inside the party’s stronghold in the southern suburbs of Beirut”.
Maariv added that the bomb, although it was launched as part of the assassination, didn’t explode for a reason that is not yet clear, and remained relatively intact at the site of the attack, which raised concern in Washington that other parties, led by Russia and China, would be able to access it and study its technology.
It noted that the bomb contains an exceptionally effective warhead relative to its weight, as well as guidance and technology systems that Moscow or Beijing don’t currently have, according to unnamed sources, making its recovery a priority for the United States.
A few days ago, Hezbollah announced that Tabatabai was killed in the same raid, along with four of its members in Lebanon, according to the same source.
Since last October, the Israeli army has intensified its attacks on Lebanon and assassinated Tabatabai a few days ago, in violation of the ceasefire agreement, signed in November 2024, with media leaks about plans to launch a new attack on the Arab country.
