Who is Naeem Qasim: New Hezbollah Chief

Hezbollah names Naeem Qasim acting chief after Nasrallah martyred in airstrike on Hezbollah headquarters in Beirut

Interim chief: Naeem Qasim, the second-in-command of Hezbollah, was named acting chief Saturday, succeeding long-time chief Syed Hassan Nasrallah, who was martyred after an Israeli airstrike on Hezbollah’s headquarters in Beirut. Nasrallah was killed in the strike, according to Hezbollah, following initial reports of a loss of contact with the leader.

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A permanent replacement for the iconic figure will eventually be named, but Hezbollah’s founder and senior ideologue will lead the organization until then. Qasim has been Hezbollah’s deputy secretary general since 1991 and was central to the party’s politics and military activities.

Childhood and Rise to Prominence in Hezbollah

Naeem Qasim was born in Kafr Qila, a southern Lebanese town on the border. His political life started in the 1970s as an Amal Party member under Imam Musa al-Sadr. Much of his life was shaped by his close association with Imam Sadr. Qasim has a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry from the Lebanese University and religious training under Ayatollah Muhammad Hussain Fadlullah.

In the early 1980s, Qasim was one of the principal founders of Hezbollah along with Abbas al-Musawi and Hassan Nasrallah. He has been able to remain a senior leader in the political wing of the organization. Further, he has served as a senior member of Hezbollah’s Shura Council, the parliamentary and governmental top-level decision-making body, which is an important constituent of that organization, where he has highly contributed to its parliamentary and governmental policies.

Leadership during a crisis

Thus, with Nasrallah, the fate of this group is at a crossroads. The choice of Qasim to head as the interim one seems to have filled that critical gap in running stability amidst this critical transition. His experience, particularly in the Shura Council of Hezbollah, held for three consecutive terms, gives him quite a strategic edge to guide the outfit through such troubled waters.

Although Qasim’s mandate is a transitional one, he will definitely stand at the helm of Hezbollah cohesion and operational coherence until a definite successor is appointed. Already there are rumors about Nasrallah’s succession, and among all the potential candidates, Hashim Safiuddin emerges as a front runner. As a cousin and son-in-law to Nasrallah, Safiuddin is already a high-ranking official within the party and will shape Hezbollah’s future track to a large extent.

A New Phase for Hezbollah

The martyrdom of Hassan Nasrallah sealed an era for the Hezbollah party. Almost for three decades, Nasrallah headed the organization, becoming the head of resistance against Israel, and was a stimulus for the implementation of military and political plans of action by the Hezbollah organization. It was under his leadership that the group evolved into a huge political force in Lebanon, at the same time being an influential militia.

Then, there is the loss. Nasrallah, in this case, but Hezbollah has vowed that resistance against the state of Israel will not ever let up. As a result, Ayatollah Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader has reportedly gone underground and summoned an emergency meeting of Iran’s National Security Council.

For Qasim, at least in an interim role, will be important for Hezbollah to navigate the group towards continuity and focus as the party decides on a permanent leader. The Shura Council is likely to settle upon the new permanent leader; among the contenders is Safiuddin, who stands as the most plausible candidate to take over.

For now, Naeem Qasim is leading Hezbollah through one of its most challenging times, and his leadership is most expected to give stability in the face of uncertainty.

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