Hizbollah readies massive funeral for slain leader Nasrallah

By AFP - Feb 20,2025 - Last updated at Feb 20,2025

Banners depicting slain leader of the Lebanese Shiite Islamist movement Hizbollah Hassan Nasrallah (C) and his deputy Hashem Safieddine (C-L) and other slain Hezbollah commanders are displayed on Beirut Airport Road, in Beirut yesterday (AFP photo)

BEIRUT — Lebanon's Hizbollah is preparing for a massive turnout for the funeral on Sunday of its slain leader Hassan Nasrallah, an opportunity for a show of strength by the Iran-backed group after a bruising war with Israel.

Nasrallah's death nearly five months ago in a huge Israeli strike on Beirut's southern suburbs left Hizbollah supporters in disbelief and sent shockwaves across Lebanon and the region.

The country will stop for Sunday's funeral, to be held at 1:00 pm at the Camille Chamoun sports stadium on the capital's outskirts.

Hizbollah has announced strict security measures and urged security forces to help manage crowds that are expected to number in the tens of thousands, with people pouring in from Hizbollah strongholds across the country, as well as from abroad.

Hassan Wehbe, 60, an electrician in Beirut's southern suburbs, said the funeral would be "a historic day".

"There will be huge participation. Israel will see that we are not afraid," he said.

Hizbollah has invited senior Lebanese officials including the president.

Its key foreign backer Iran has said it will participate "at a high level", without specifying who will attend.

Nicholas Blanford, a Beirut-based Hizbollah expert and senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, said it was important for Hizbollah "to be able to demonstrate that they haven't been cowed , that they are still a popular force" within the Shiite community.

The funeral "is going to be exactly the event for that", he told AFP.

Rate