Who is Hashem Safieddine, Hezbollah’s Potential Next Leader?
12:24 GMT 29.09.2024 (Updated: 12:25 GMT 29.09.2024)
© Photo : Screengrab/Al Mayadeen
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On Saturday, the Shiite Lebanese movement Hezbollah confirmed that its leader, Hassan Nasrallah, was killed in an Israeli airstrike on Beirut September 27.
Hashem Safieddine has been named as slain Hassan Nasrallah’s most likely successor by several media outlets and experts.
What is known about Hashem Safieddine?
Hashem Safieddine heads the Executive Council, which coordinates Hezbollah's political affairs and civilian activities, including communications, education, health, economics, and trade unions.
Safieddine also sits on the Jihad Council, which manages the group's military operations.
Overall, he has been part of Hezbollah's structure since the group's founding in 1982.
Screenshot showing Hashem Safieddine, the head of Hezbollah's executive council.
© Photo : Screenshot/Al Arabya/AFP
Early Years & Studies
Safieddine, a maternal cousin of Nasrallah, was born in 1964 in the town of Deir Qanoun En Nahr in southern Lebanon’s Tyre district.
Just like Nasrallah, Safieddine is recognized as a descendant of the Prophet Muhammad, which grants him the honorific title of sayyed and the right to wear a black turban.
He studied theology in Iraq and Iran alongside Nasrallah, and was summoned back to Beirut in 1994 to head the Executive Council.
Safieddine’s son is married to Zeinab Soleimani, the daughter of the late Iranian General Qasem Soleimani.
NASRALLAH’S DEATH A ‘DEVASTATING BLOW’ THAT WILL TRIGGER FURTHER VIOLENCE – BEIRUT-BASED SCHOLAR
— Sputnik (@SputnikInt) September 28, 2024
The assassination of Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah delivered “a devastating blow to Hezbollah” and the Iranian-led Axis of Resistance alliance, which will inevitably escalate… pic.twitter.com/2ootJAT1KW
Prominent statements
Safieddine has appeared openly at political and religious events, as well as funerals of slain Hezbollah fighters. His public statements have reflected the Lebanese group’s commitment to the Palestinian cause.
“Our history, our guns and our rockets are with you. Everything we have is with you,” Safieddine said in October 2023 in Dahiyeh.
Safieddine weighed in on how Hezbollah views its leadership succession in a July speech, saying: “In our resistance … when any leader is martyred, another takes up the flag and goes on with new, certain, strong determination.”
Safieddine was designated as Hezbollah’s next leader in the event that "the Zionists succeed in assassinating Hassan Nasrallah" at a general meeting in 2008, Iranian newspaper Khoursid reported.
