Hezbollah confirms death of Hassan Nasrallah’s potential successor Hashem Safieddine in Israeli strike

Hezbollah has confirmed the death of Hashem Safieddine, former chief Hassan Nasrallah’s cousin and the cleric tipped to become the group’s next leader, who was killed in an Israeli air strike nearly three weeks ago.

The Israeli military reported on Tuesday night that Safieddine was targeted in a strike in the southern suburbs of Beirut.

Hezbollah issued a statement on Wednesday mourning Safieddine as a “great leader and a great martyr” who lived an “honourable life”. However, the Iran-backed militant group didn’t name the leader.

He had been serving as the head of the group’s executive council and was a cousin of the late secretary general, Hassan Nasrallah, who was killed in an Israeli air strike on September 27.

“Hassan Nasrallah will no longer be able to terrorise the world,” Israel said following Nasrallah’s death.

Following Nasrallah’s death, Safieddine assumed a prominent leadership role within Hezbollah and was expected to be formally elected as the next secretary general, although no official announcement had been made prior to his death.

On October 4, Israel conducted a series of air strikes near Beirut’s airport, during which Hezbollah officials reported losing contact with Safieddine. US media sources cited Israeli officials stating that he was the intended target of the bombing.

The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) confirmed on Tuesday that Safieddine was killed alongside Ali Hussein Hazima, whom they described as the commander of Hezbollah’s Intelligence Headquarters.

The IDF accused Safieddine of orchestrating “terrorist attacks against the State of Israel” for years and participating in Hezbollah’s “central decision-making processes.”

In 2017, Safieddine was labelled a “global terrorist” by the US and Saudi Arabia.

Having undertaken religious studies in Iran, Safieddine had familial ties to the Iranian Revolutionary Guards; his son was married to a daughter of General Qasem Soleimani, the influential Iranian commander killed in a 2020 US air strike in Iraq. Safieddine was believed to be around 60 years old at the time of his death.

In a recent speech in Beirut, Safieddine discussed Hezbollah’s perspective on leadership succession, stating, “In our resistance, when any leader is martyred, another takes up the flag and goes on with new, certain, strong determination.”

The Israeli military ramped up its offensive against Hezbollah following nearly a year of cross-border hostilities, which escalated due to the ongoing war in Gaza.

Israeli officials stated that the objective was to ensure the safe return of residents displaced by Hezbollah’s rocket, missile, and drone attacks.

The conflict has had a devastating impact, with at least 2,500 Lebanese casualties and nearly 12,000 injuries reported by Lebanon’s health ministry over the past year.

In response, Hezbollah has launched thousands of rockets and drones at Israel, resulting in at least 59 deaths in northern Israel and the occupied Golan Heights, according to Reuters.

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