The late leader of Lebanon’s Hezbollah group, Hashem Safieddine, was laid to rest in his southern hometown on Monday. He died in early October in a series of Israeli airstrikes in Beirut, just days after he took the post as secretary-general following Hassan Nasrallah’s death.
Nasrallah and Safieddine were founding members of Hezbollah and enjoyed influence among Iran-backed groups in Yemen, Iraq, and Palestine. Safieddine was a member of the Shura Council and its military command, and headed the Executive Council, which runs schools and social programs.
The Israel-Hezbollah war, which began on October 7, 2023, resulted in over 4,000 deaths in Lebanon and dozens in Israel. The war ended on November 27 with a US-brokered ceasefire. Last week, Israel withdrew its troops from much of south Lebanon but kept five posts inside the country.
Safieddine’s brother is Hezbollah’s point man in Tehran, while his son is married to Zeinab Soleimani, the daughter of Gen. Qassem Soleimani, a key figure in Iran’s elite Quds Force. Thousands attended Safieddine’s funeral in Deir Qanoun An-Nahr, where he was draped with Hezbollah’s yellow flag and had his black turban placed on top.
Source: https://apnews.com/article/lebanon-israel-hezbollah-funeral-hashem-safieddine-9a24958377ce6831f8c539669dd04751