Lebanese group Hezbollah has confirmed the death of longtime leader Hassan Nasrallah in an airstrike on the group’s underground headquarters near the capital Beirut.
Hours after Israel claimed it had killed 64-year-old Nasrallah, Iran-backed Hezbollah said on Saturday that its leader had “joined fellow martyrs” and, in fear, “waged jihad against the enemy.” We will continue to support Palestine.” This means that regional wars are no longer avoidable.
Israel announced on Friday night that it had carried out a major airstrike on the southern outskirts of Beirut targeting Hezbollah leaders, destroying at least six homes.
Mr. Nasrallah has rarely appeared in public since 2006. He was elected secretary-general of Hezbollah in 1992 at the age of 32 after an Israeli helicopter gunship killed his predecessor, Abbas al-Moussawi.
Here are the reactions to Nasrallah’s murder:
hezbollah
The Lebanese group acknowledged in a statement that its leader was killed “following a dangerous Zionist attack in the southern suburbs” of Beirut.
The newspaper said that Nasrullah had “joined the great and immortal martyr comrade who led his path for nearly 30 years.”
“To the noblest, the holiest, and the most honorable martyrs of our journey,” the organization said, “to confront the enemy, to support Gaza and Palestine, and to defend Lebanon and its loyal and honorable people.” “We will continue our jihad in the future,” he said.
Israel
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his country was “settled” with Nasrallah’s killing.
“We have found closure with the perpetrators of the murders of countless Israelis and numerous nationals of other countries, including hundreds of Americans and dozens of French citizens,” he said since Friday’s killing of the Hezbollah chief. he said in his first statement.
Prime Minister Netanyahu said that as long as the “terrorist” Nasrallah was alive, he would have been able to “quickly restore the capabilities eroded from Hezbollah” in a series of recent operations.
“So I gave the order, and Nasrallah is no longer with us.”
Hamas
Hamas condemned the killing of the Lebanese leader as a “despicable act of terrorism” by Israel.
“We condemn in the strongest terms this barbaric Zionist invasion and targeting of residential buildings,” the group said in a statement, adding that Israel ignored “all international values, customs and charters.” “This is a blatant threat to international security and peace.” Given the silence, helplessness and international neglect. ”
“In the face of this Zionist crime and genocide, we renew our absolute solidarity and stand in solidarity with our compatriots in Hezbollah and the Lebanese Islamic Resistance,” the group said.
US
US President Joe Biden said Nasrallah’s killing was “a measure of justice for his many victims, including thousands of Americans, Israelis, and Lebanese civilians.”
Biden reiterated the United States’ support for “Israel’s right to protect itself from Hezbollah, Hamas, the Houthis, and other Iranian-backed terrorist groups.” His statement said he had directed the secretary of defense to “further strengthen the defense posture of U.S. forces” in the region.
fatah
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas condemned the “brutal Israeli invasion”.
The Palestinian Fatah movement expressed its condolences and stressed “the Lebanese people, their resistance movement and their historical relationship with Palestine.”
Iran
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said in a statement that Nasrallah’s killing “will only further strengthen the resistance.” He added that the US cannot deny collusion.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei declared five days of mourning for Hezbollah. He called on all Muslims to rise up against Israel, saying Nasrallah’s blood “will not go unpunished.”
“The fate of the region will be decided by resistance, with Hezbollah at the top,” Khamenei said.
“The glorious path of the resistance leader… will continue and his sacred goal of liberating Jerusalem will be achieved,” Nasser Qanani, a spokesman for the country’s foreign ministry, said in a post on X. Iranian Vice President Mohammad Javad Zarif praised Nasrallah as a “symbol of the fight against oppression.”
Iraq
Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammad Shia al-Sudani condemned the attack as “shameful” and “a crime that shows that the Zionist entity has crossed all red lines.”
In a statement, Sudani called Nasrallah a “martyr who walked the path of justice” and declared a three-day period of mourning.
This came shortly after the influential Iraqi Shiite leader Muqtada al-Sadr announced three days of mourning. A leader of Iraq’s Sadrist movement wrote of X: “We bid farewell to a comrade who has walked the path of resistance and rebellion.”
turkey
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has condemned Israel’s recent attack on Lebanon as part of Israel’s policy of “genocide, occupation and invasion” and has called on the UN Security Council and other bodies to stop Israel. asked to do so.
In a post on He said the government should take a more “resolute” stance.
Houthis in Yemen
Yemen’s Houthi rebels said Nasrallah’s killing strengthened their resolve to confront Israel’s enemies.
“The martyrdom of Hassan Nasrallah will increase the flame of sacrifice, the heat of enthusiasm and the strength of determination” to achieve “the victory and annihilation of Israel’s enemies,” the rebel leadership council said in a statement. I swore.
united nations
UN Secretary-General António Guterres on Saturday expressed “grave concern” over the “dramatic escalation” seen in Lebanon in recent days as Israel targets Hezbollah in the capital Beirut, according to a UN spokesperson. “There is,” he said.
“This cycle of violence must be stopped now and all sides must step back from the brink. The Lebanese people, the Israeli people and the wider region cannot afford an all-out war,” the statement said.
Guterres reiterated his call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and the release of all prisoners held there.
Germany
Foreign Minister Annalena Barbok warned that the situation in Lebanon was extremely dangerous and could push the entire region further into a “spiral of absolute violence.”
“This situation poses a serious threat to regional stability and Lebanon’s stability, which is in no way in Israel’s security and interests,” Barbock wrote to X.
France
France’s Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs said in a statement that it was in contact with the Lebanese authorities and France’s partners in the region to prevent destabilization and a major fire.
Jean-Luc Mélenchon, a left-wing French politician and former member of the European Parliament, said the assassination was “one more step towards an invasion of Lebanon and an all-out war.”
In a post to X he said: “France no longer relies on the ground. Prime Minister Netanyahu’s crimes have gone unpunished and will continue. The danger to the region and the world is extremely grave.”
Russia
Russia’s Foreign Ministry issued a statement strongly condemning Israel’s killing of Nasrallah and calling on Israel to cease hostilities in Lebanon.
“This strong action comes with even bigger and more dramatic consequences for Lebanon and the entire Middle East,” the statement said.
Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told the United Nations General Assembly he was concerned about the “acts of political murder that are now almost commonplace.”