In his first statement following Israel’s announcement of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah’s death, Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, declared that Israel cannot significantly harm the strong foundation of Hezbollah. Although Khamenei did not directly reference Nasrallah’s death in his remarks, he asserted that “the Zionist criminals are too insignificant to inflict serious damage on the robust structure of Hezbollah in Lebanon.”
Khamenei further emphasized that “the future of the region will be determined by the resistance forces, led by Hezbollah.” He continued by saying, “Lebanon will make the invading enemy regret its actions,” while condemning Israel’s ongoing campaign in Gaza, describing it as a lesson that the “terrorist gang ruling the Zionist regime” has yet to learn.
Khamenei called on all Muslims to stand with Lebanon and support Hezbollah in resisting the oppressive and malicious Zionist regime.
Nasrallah’s Reported Death
On Saturday, the Israeli military officially announced the death of Hezbollah’s Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah in an airstrike targeting the group’s headquarters in Beirut’s southern suburbs on Friday night. Israeli army spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani confirmed Nasrallah’s death on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter), stating, “Hassan Nasrallah has been killed.” Another Israeli spokesman, Captain David Abraham, affirmed to Agence France-Presse that Hezbollah’s leader had been eliminated.
A source close to Hezbollah in Beirut mentioned that contact with Nasrallah was lost on Friday evening, but also noted that similar rumors had circulated during the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah conflict, only for Nasrallah to reappear later unharmed.
The Israeli army’s statement detailed the operation as part of “Operation New Regime,” which also reportedly killed Ali Karki, described as Hezbollah’s Southern Front commander, along with other key leaders. According to the statement, the strike targeted Hezbollah’s top command as they were planning terrorist activities against Israeli civilians.
During his 32-year leadership of Hezbollah, Nasrallah was responsible for numerous attacks on Israeli civilians and soldiers, as well as orchestrating terrorist operations worldwide, resulting in civilian casualties from various nationalities.
