The assassination of Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah has sent shockwaves across Lebanon and the Middle East and has now reached India
Raziqueh Hussain
Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah’s reverence transcends borders, with his charismatic leadership and anti-Israeli stance earning him widespread admiration among Muslims, especially Shias globally.
As news of the killing of the powerful Hezbollah group’s leader spread to India, the Shia community is deeply impacted and has come out to protest in large numbers by holding rallies and majlises (condolence meets) in major cities like Srinagar, New Delhi, Lucknow, Mumbai and Bengaluru.
In the Kashmir Valley, he is regarded as a ‘symbol of resistance’ against oppression. This sentiment is especially strong, given the region’s historical support for the Palestinian cause and opposition to Israeli occupation. Political campaigns were put on hold to respect the sentiments of the public. Former chief minister and president of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) Mehbooba Mufti and senior National Conference leader Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi called off their election campaign to condole the killing.
In Lucknow, candlelight marches were held from Chota Imambada to Bada Imambada where thousands thronged chanting slogans against the US-led Axis of Evil and several meetings were held to honour the slain leader.
India Islamic Culture Centre in New Delhi invited the Lebanese and Iranian representatives to a condolence meeting and a candlelight march was held at Kashmere Gate.
In a new wave of heightened social media censorship, Meta’s policies and practices have been silencing voices in support of Palestine and Palestinian human rights on Instagram and Facebook. Any post related to Nasrallah is being removed and accounts are being banned. People are outraged but the information continues as posts are being made without names or hashtags. And this is happening globally, not just in India.
Hassan Nasrallah has been the face of Hezbollah for over three decades. He was synonymous with his black turban, thin glasses, and salt-and-pepper beard. Being part of Hezbollah, a political party dedicated to the armed struggle against Israel which occupied the Lebanese state for 22 years, the leader held the fate of Lebanon in his hands, in war and peace.
Sayyed, as he was popularly called, was the only source of resistance to Israel (backed by Iran) within the Arab region as the other Arab leaders were being criticised for abandoning the Palestinian cause. This heroic aura was further enhanced in the summer of 2006 when Hezbollah defeated Israel’s forces in a brief war that lasted 33 days. Nasrallah’s clarion call on national television urging the Lebanese to look out of the window as the last of the Israeli jets pummelled to the ground is considered revolutionary and treasured to date in a crisis-ridden country.
A piquancy unmatched, Nasrallah influenced the course of history with unparalleled verve, in fiery speeches laced with religious references, punctuated with humour and threats backed up by a raised finger.
He has been on Israel’s kill list for decades. His influence in the Iran-backed axis of resistance grew exponentially after the US assassinated Iran’s top general Qassem Soleimani, the architect of the region-wide axis, in 2020. Nasrallah’s assassination is by far the biggest and most consequential of Israel’s targeted killings in years, with a major possibility of escalating the war in the Middle East.
There have been tit-for-tat attacks between Hezbollah and Israel following the October 7, 2023, attack by Hamas into southern Israel that preceded the bombardment of Gaza.
Days before he was killed, Nasrallah vowed to continue striking Israeli positions until Israel’s bombing in Gaza ended. “I say clearly: no matter the sacrifices, consequences, or future possibilities, the resistance in Lebanon will not stop supporting Gaza,” he said in a speech on September 19.
Prominent Christian political leaders in Lebanon released statements eulogising Nasrallah after he was confirmed dead in the Israeli attack.
Sleiman Frangieh, leader of Lebanon’s Christian political party Marada and Hezbollah’s preferred candidate for the presidency, said, “The symbol is gone, the legend is born, and the resistance continues.”
Former Lebanese president Michel Aoun, a Christian and founder of the Free Patriotic Movement party which is allied with Hezbollah, praised Nasrallah as a martyr for the country.
“With the martyrdom of His Eminence the Secretary-General of Hezbollah, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, Lebanon loses a distinguished and honest leader who led the national resistance on the path of victory and liberation. He was faithful to his promise and loyal to his people who reciprocated his love, trust and commitment,” he wrote on X.
“May God grant the great martyr a spacious place in heaven, and condolences to his family, the resistance, all his loved ones, and all of Lebanon,” Aoun said.
Nasrallah rarely appeared in public but cultivated a cult-like following with his televised speeches. Israel and the United States have designated Hezbollah as a terrorist organisation, for insidious reasons. Resistance is not terrorism.
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The author is editor-in-chief of a UK-based magazine
