Hezbollah says it will choose Nasrallah's successor 'at the earliest opportunity'
Naim Qassem delivers first address since death of Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Hezbollah’s second-in-command following the death of leader Hassan Nasrallah signaled Monday that the terrorist group is set to reveal its new leader soon, saying it will choose his successor "at the earliest opportunity."
Naim Qassem made the remark during the first televised speech from a Hezbollah official after Nasrallah was killed by an Israeli airstrike in Lebanon’s capital of Beirut on Friday, according to Reuters.
"We will choose a secretary-general for the party at the earliest opportunity... and we will fill the leadership and positions on a permanent basis," Qassem said while speaking in front of a trio of wooden panels from an undisclosed location.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Qassem reportedly added that Hezbollah is continuing to fire rockets at Israel and that "What we are doing is the bare minimum... We know that the battle may be long."
ISRAELI MILITARY SAYS HEZBOLLAH LEADER HASSAN NASRALLAH KILLED IN BEIRUT STRIKE
Hezbollah deputy leader Sheikh Naim Qassem delivers an address from an unknown location days after Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah was killed by an Israeli airstrike. (Al Manar TV/Reuters)
"Israel was not able to reach our military capabilities, and what its media says about hitting most of the medium and long-range capabilities is a dream they have not achieved and will never achieve," Qassem was quoted by Reuters as saying regarding the terrorist group’s rockets.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}He added that Hezbollah is ready to fight back against any Israeli ground operation in Lebanon.
"We will face any possibility and we are ready if the Israelis decide to enter by land and the resistance forces are ready for a ground engagement," Qassem reportedly said.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Hezbollah deputy leader Naim Qassem leads funeral prayers during the funeral of Hezbollah senior leader Ibrahim Aqil and Hezbollah member Mahmoud Hamad, who were killed in Israeli airstrikes on Beirut's southern suburbs, on Sept. 22.
The Israeli Defense Forces confirmed that Nasrallah died in a strike against the group’s headquarters in Lebanon on Friday.
"The IDF announces that yesterday (Friday), September 27th, 2024, Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of the Hezbollah terrorist organization and one of its founders, was eliminated by the IDF, together with Ali Karki, the Commander of Hezbollah’s Southern Front, and additional Hezbollah commanders," the IDF said in a statement.
People listen to a speech by Hezbollah's deputy leader Naim Qassem, broadcasted on Hezbollah's al-Manar television channel, at a barber shop in Beirut, Lebanon, on Monday, Sept. 30. (AP/Bilal Hussein)
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Following precise intelligence from the IDF and Israeli security establishment, IAF fighter jets conducted a targeted strike on the Central Headquarters of the Hezbollah terrorist organization, which was located underground embedded under a residential building in the area of Dahieh in Beirut," the statement added. "The strike was conducted while Hezbollah’s senior chain of command were operating from the headquarters and advancing terrorist activities against the citizens of the State of Israel."
Fox News’ Peter Aitken contributed to this report.