Iran’s supreme leader moves to secure location following Nasrallah’s death, reacts to Hezbollah chief’s killing

NEW DELHI,SEPT 28 : Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has been reportedly transferred to a secure location within the country, according to two regional officials who were briefed by Tehran. The officials, speaking to news agency Reuters, confirmed that heightened security measures have been implemented around Khamenei following Israel’s announcement that Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah was killed in an airstrike on Beirut.

Sources of Reuters said that Iran is maintaining constant communication with Hezbollah and other allied proxy groups to determine their response to Nasrallah’s death. According to the Reuters report, Tehran and its regional partners are strategizing their next steps.

Meanwhile, Khamenei on Saturday responded via X formerly known as Twitter to the the IDF claim that it had killed Hassan Nasrallah. Iran’s Supreme leader said that Israel’s military offensives in Gaza, Lebanon or elsewhere “cannot affect or topple the strong structure of the resistance”

He said Israel was “too small to cause significant harm” to Hezbollah’s structure and that “the fate of this region will be determined by the resistance forces” led by it.

Without mentioning Nasrallah or claims regrading his death, Khomeini came down heavily on Israel for bombing residential buildings in Beirut. He said the “massacre of the defenseless people in Lebanon,” had “exposed the brutal nature” of Israel and underscored the “shortsightedness and foolish policy” of its leaders.

Khamenei stated that it is an obligation for all Muslims to support the people of Lebanon and the honorable Hezbollah by providing resources and assistance as Hezbollah confronts the “usurping, cruel, malicious Zionist regime.”

“The terrorist gang ruling Zionist regime hasn’t learned from its 1yr criminal war in Gaza doesn’t understand the massacre of women, children, & civilians cannot hurt strong structure of Resistance or bring it to its knees”, Khamenei said in a post on X.

Nasrallah, who has led Hezbollah for more than three decades, was reportedly killed in massive airstrikes that flattened six residential buildings in Dahieh, south of Beirut, killing at least six people including children. The death toll is likely to rise significantly as teams comb through the rubble of the six buildings. It was the biggest blast to hit the Lebanese capital in the past year.

The Israeli military claimed that it was a precise airstrike on the Hezbollah headquarters. Israel also launched a series of strikes on other areas of the southern suburbs following the initial blast.

-PTI