Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah’s killing by Israel on Saturday marked a significant escalation in the Gaza war. The 64-year-old was a designated terrorist by the United States. Hashem Safieddine can succeed him.
Analysts told news agency AP that Nasrallah’s assassination is a significant setback for the force as it revealed the extent of its vulnerability against its arch enemy Israel.
“This will shake the confidence of Hezbollah’s Iran-backed allies across the Arab world, from the Houthis in Yemen to the Popular Mobilization Forces in Iraq, as well as Iran itself, sparking a tectonic shift in Iran’s network of influence in the Middle East,” said Lina Khatib, an associate fellow at Chatham House, an international affairs think tank.
Who will succeed Nasrallah?
As Hezbollah contemplates its next response to Israel, analysts say the group lacks a leader as influential as Nasrallah to command widespread acceptance among other leaders within its force.
Among the most widely regarded successor to Nasrallah is his cousin Hashem Safieddine, who heads the group’s political affairs. Hezbollah’s statement announcing Nasrallah’s death on Saturday made no mention on its successor or if Safieddine survived Israel’s assault.
Things to know about Hashem Safieddine
The US Treasury department regards Safieddine as a “senior leader” and a “key member” of its executive Shura council.
Born in 1964 in Lebanon, Safieddine has also been the head of Hezbollah’s decision-making body since 1992. He pursued his religious studies in the Iranian holy city of Qom. Safieddine is also believed to have strong ties with Iran and the Ayatollahs.
His son is married to the daughter of former Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) commander, General Qasem Soleimani. He was heading the IRGC’s foreign operations command before the United States killed him in an airstrike in Iraq in 2020.
Like Nasrallah, Safieddine is also named as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist by the US State Department in 2017. Iran’s foe Saudi Arabia also designated Safieddine as a “terrorist” in the same year.
Sources close to Hezbollah told AFP that Safieddine was the “most likely” candidate to assume the leadership of the force. Unlike Nasrallah, who lived in hiding for years, Safieddine has appeared openly at recent political and religious events. With title of “Sayyed”, he also sports a black turban, claiming to be a descendant of Prophet Mohammad.
(With inputs from agencies)
