Just like his cousin Hassan Nasrallah – killed in a massive Israeli air raid on Hezbollah’s headquarters in the outskirts of southern Beirut on September 27 – Hashem Safieddine wears a black turban, a prestigious Shiite symbol marking him out as a descendant of the Prophet Mohammed. Safieddine, described by his opponents as aggressive and “bloodthirsty”, is widely expected to take over as Hezbollah’s new leader. And he can count on his influential brother, Abdallah Safieddine, who heads the group’s operations in Iran, to back him up.
Speculation is rife over how Hezbollah will overcome the loss of its longtime ideological and strategic leader, Hassan Nasrallah. But if there is one thing that experts do not seem to doubt, it is the name of his successor: Hashem Safieddine.
