Iran’s Serious Dilemma After Hezbollah Chief Hassan Nasrallah’s Killing

Tehran:

Israel’s killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah has given Iran a serious dilemma — how to cope with the loss of a crucial ally and still maintain its regional influence.

Lebanon’s Hezbollah group, which has long been armed and financed by Iran, on Saturday confirmed Nasrallah’s death after Israel said it had “eliminated” him in an air strike on Beirut’s southern suburbs.

His death was a sharp escalation in nearly a year of tit-for-tat cross-border exchanges between Hezbollah and Israel since the Gaza conflict began, and risks plunging the entire region into a wider war.

Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei vowed Nasrallah’s death “will not be in vain”, and First Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref said it would bring about Israel’s “destruction”.