World reacts to Israel’s killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah
The Lebanese group Hezbollah has confirmed the death of Hassan Nasrallah, its longtime leader, in an air strike on the group’s underground headquarters near the capital, Beirut.
Hours after Israel claimed killing the 64-year-old Nasrallah, the Iran-backed Hezbollah on Saturday said its leader “has joined his fellow martyrs” and pledged it would “continue the holy war against the enemy and in support of Palestine” amid fears that a regional war is now inevitable.
Israel carried out a large strike on Beirut’s southern suburbs on Friday evening, which it said targeted the Hezbollah leader, flattening at least six residential buildings.
Nasrallah had rarely been seen in public since 2006. He was elected secretary-general of Hezbollah in 1992, aged 32, after an Israeli helicopter gunship killed his predecessor, Abbas al-Musawi.
Hezbollah
The Lebanese group confirmed in a statement its leader had been killed “following the treacherous Zionist strike on the southern suburbs” of Beirut.
It said Nasrallah had “joined his great and immortal martyred comrades, whose path he led for nearly 30 years”.
The group said it pledged “to the highest, most sacred and most precious martyr in our journey” to “continue its jihad in confronting the enemy, in support of Gaza and Palestine, and in defence of Lebanon and its steadfast and honourable people”.
Israel
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel had “settled the score” with Nasrallah’s killing.
“We settled the score with the one responsible for the murder of countless Israelis and many citizens of other countries, including hundreds of Americans and dozens of French,” he said in his first statement since the Hezbollah chief’s killing on Friday.
Hamas
Hamas has condemned the killing of the Lebanese leader as a “cowardly, terrorist act” by Israel.
“We condemn in the strongest terms this barbaric Zionist aggression and targeting of residential buildings,” the group said in a statement, accusing Israel of disregarding “all international values, customs and charters” and “blatantly threaten[ing] international security and peace, in light of silence, helplessness and international neglect”.
“In the face of this Zionist crime and massacre, we renew our absolute solidarity and stand united with the brothers in Hezbollah and the Islamic resistance in Lebanon,” the group said.
