Mideast countries, anti-Israel factions condemn brutal assaults in Lebanon, killing of Hezbollah leader

Cairo, Sep 29 (IANS) Countries and anti-Israel factions in the Middle East have strongly condemned the Israeli attack that killed Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah in the southern suburbs of Beirut, Lebanon.

On Friday evening, Israeli warplanes launched airstrikes on Hezbollah’s main headquarters in Dahieh, which Israeli military said killed Nasrallah along with some other group commanders, Xinhua news agency reported.

Hezbollah on Saturday confirmed Nasrallah’s death.

In a statement, the group mourned Nasrallah, describing him as “a great martyr” and “a heroic, bold, brave, wise, insightful, and faithful leader” for nearly 30 years, who lately led in “the battle for Palestine, Gaza, and the oppressed Palestinian people”.

According to Lebanon’s MTV TV channel, Friday’s raids on Beirut killed at least six people, injured 91 others, flattened several residential buildings, and caused huge damage to infrastructure in the neighbourhood.

Shortly after Hezbollah confirmed Nasrallah’s death, Hamas issued a statement condemning the Israeli airstrikes on Dahieh as “a cowardly terrorist act, a massacre, and a heinous crime” that proved once again Israel’s “bloodiness and brutality”.

Hamas held Israel fully responsible for “this heinous crime and its serious repercussions on the security and stability of the region,” and condemned the US administration’s “continued support” for Israel.

Meanwhile, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan condemned on social media platform X Israel’s “brutal” and “inhumane” attacks that killed many Lebanese, including children, and called on the international community to “act swiftly” to ensure global peace, stability and security.

While also slamming Israel’s “utter disregard for innocent human life,” Iranian Vice President for Strategic Affairs Mohammad Javad Zarif vowed on X that “The Resistance will continue as long as the cause — aggression and occupation — persists”.

In the meantime, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei declared five days of national mourning over the “martyrdom” of Nasrallah.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Foreign Minister Seyyed Abbas Araghchi also mourned the death of Nasrallah.

In a phone call with his Lebanese counterpart Abdallah Bou Habib, Araghchi described Nasrallah’s death as a great loss for Lebanon, West Asia, and the Muslim world.

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani called Nasrallah’s killing “a new sinful attack and a crime that confirms Israel’s crossing of all red lines,” saying it expresses Israel’s “reckless desire to expand the conflict at the expense of all the peoples of the region”.

The Prime Minister announced on Saturday a three-day national mourning in honour of the “martyrdom” of Nasrallah.

On Saturday, the Tunisian Foreign Ministry condemned the “brutal aggression” against Lebanon, and called on the UN Security Council to adopt a “decisive and firm position to stop the bombings against the Lebanese people and put an end to the violation of their sovereignty and the threat to their security”.

Meanwhile, Yemen’s Houthi group described Nasrallah’s passing as a “huge loss” and “a curse that haunts Israel until it is uprooted”. The group declared three days of mourning and ordered flags to be flown at half-mast.

In a statement by the Syrian Foreign Ministry, the Syrian government strongly condemned the “criminal Israeli aggression,” which it described as another example of Israel’s “treachery, cowardice, and terrorism”. The Ministry accused Israel of disregarding international law and held it fully responsible for the consequences of the attack.

In a post on X, Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi expressed his country’s “solidarity with Lebanon and its people,” reaffirming “support for Lebanon’s sovereignty, security, stability, cohesion, and peace”.

In a phone call with Mikati, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi vowed to stand by Lebanon, especially during these critical circumstances. Sisi also stressed “the need for an immediate, comprehensive, and permanent ceasefire in both Lebanon and Gaza”.

Israel has intensified its airstrikes across Lebanon since Monday, marking the most extensive Israeli military action in the country since 2006.

Israel’s latest escalation further fuels its ongoing clashes with Hezbollah that began on October 8, 2023, when Hezbollah started launching rockets at Israel in solidarity with Hamas, prompting Israel’s retaliatory artillery fire and airstrikes in southeastern Lebanon.

According to the Lebanese Health Ministry on Saturday, 1,640 people in Lebanon, including 104 children and 194 women, have been killed and 8,408 more injured in Israeli attacks on Lebanon since October 8 last year.

–IANS

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