The killing of longtime Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah in Israeli airstrikes on a Beirut suburb this week has introduced up questions on his doable inheritor, Hashem Safieddine.
Nasrallah led the Iran-backed terror group for 32 years. He was killed alongside different Hezbollah higher-ups when an Israeli strike leveled six buildings on Friday, Israel mentioned.
Safieddine, Nasrallah’s maternal cousin, heads Hezbollah’s government council, which oversees the phobia group’s political affairs.
He additionally sits on Hezbollah’s Jihad Council, which manages navy operations.
Like Nasrallah, Safieddine wears a black turban that identifies him as a descendant of the prophet Mohammed.
He was designated as a terrorist by the US State Division in 2017. He made headlines within the wake of Hamas’ assault on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, when he confirmed Hezbollah’s help for the group.
“Our hearts are with you. Our minds are with you. Our souls are with you. Our historical past and weapons and our rockets are with you,” Safieddine instructed Hamas in the future after the lethal incursion, which marked the start of the Israel-Hamas warfare within the Gaza Strip.
In June, Safieddine threatened an enormous escalation in opposition to Israel after a senior Hezbollah commander was killed in a strike on a central command heart in southern Lebanon.
Nasrallah appeared to have been grooming Safieddine through the years, consultants mentioned.
Nasrallah “began tailoring positions for him inside quite a lot of totally different councils inside Lebanese Hezbollah,” mentioned Phillip Smyth, an knowledgeable on Iran-backed Shiite militias.
“A few of them have been extra opaque than others. They’ve had him come, exit and communicate.”
As Hezbollah works to reorganize its management within the coming days, Safieddine’s household relationship and bodily resemblance to Nasrallah might additionally rely in his favor.
With Submit wires
