Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hezbollah confirmed on Saturday that its leader, Hassan Nasrallah, was killed in an Israeli airstrike a day earlier.
Hezbollah’s statement mourned Nasrallah, stating, “Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, Secretary General of Hezbollah, has joined his great, immortal martyr comrades whom he led for about 30 years.”
The group reported that Nasrallah died alongside other members following what they described as a “treacherous Zionist strike” in the southern suburbs of Beirut. The announcement triggered emotional reactions across the Lebanese capital, with AFP journalists observing people crying in the streets and one woman exclaiming, “Oh my God.” Gunfire echoed through the city as supporters mourned the loss of their charismatic leader, who had been a significant figure in the region’s political landscape.
One passerby, donning a black veil, expressed disbelief over the news, shouting, “Don’t believe them, they’re lying, Sayyed is well,” referring to Nasrallah.
Israeli jets conducted extensive bombardments in Beirut’s southern areas and surrounding regions throughout the night, marking the most aggressive strikes on Hezbollah territory since the 2006 war between the two sides. Nasrallah had largely remained out of the public eye since that conflict.
He became Hezbollah’s secretary general in 1992 at the age of 32, following the assassination of his predecessor, Abbas al-Musawi, by an Israeli helicopter strike.
