Hezbollah of Lebanon has officially announced it has chosen deputy leader Naim Qassem to succeed Haasan Nasrallah as leader after his death in an Israeli strike last month.
Kassem, a longtime deputy to Nasrallah, has served as the militant group’s acting leader since Nasrallah’s death.
“Hezbollah’s (governing) Shura Council agreed to elect… Sheikh Naim Qassem as secretary general of Hezbollah,” the Iran-backed group said in a statement, more than a month after Nasrallah’s killing.
Hezbollah vowed to continue with Nasrallah’s policies ‘until victory is achieved’.
Hassan Nasrallah, the former leader of Hezbollah, was killed in an Israeli attack on Beirut in late September this year.
Since then, several other senior Hezbollah officials have also been killed in consecutive Israeli strikes on the outskirts of Beirut.
Independent Iranian media have reported that there is no confirmed information on Sheikh Naim Qassem’s current whereabouts.
The appointment of a new Hezbollah leader comes amid escalating tensions between Israel and Hezbollah, raising concerns about further destabilization in the region.
