The Lebanese Hezbollah party officially announced today, Tuesday, the election of Naim Qassem as the party’s secretary-general, succeeding Hassan Nasrallah, who was assassinated in the southern suburbs of Beirut.

Hezbollah said in a statement issued today, "Based on faith in God Almighty, commitment to authentic Muhammadan Islam, adherence to Hezbollah's principles and goals, and in accordance with the approved mechanism for electing the Secretary-General, Hezbollah's Shura Council agreed to elect His Eminence Sheikh Naim Qassem as Secretary-General of Hezbollah, carrying the blessed banner in this journey, asking God Almighty to guide him in this noble mission in leading Hezbollah and its Islamic resistance."

The same statement added: “We pledge to God Almighty and to the spirit of our highest and most precious martyr, His Eminence Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah (may God be pleased with him), and to the martyrs, the mujahideen of the Islamic Resistance, and our steadfast, patient and loyal people, to work together to achieve the principles of Hezbollah and the goals of its path, and to keep the flame of resistance shining and its banner raised until victory is achieved, and God is victorious over His affair, God is strong and mighty.”

Qassem had stressed in his third speech since the assassination of Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut on the 15th of this month that Israel is “an occupying, usurping entity that poses a real threat to the region and the world,” stressing that it considers Lebanon part of the “expansion project” that it seeks to achieve, and that its Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, “wants a new Middle East.”

Qassem stated that Hezbollah has moved to the "stage of causing pain to the enemy" and that it has "the right to target any point in Israel."

He said, "Israel is betting on criminality that terrifies others and absolute adoption by America."

He added, "The Palestinians have the right to take action that expels the occupation, shakes its presence, and prevents it from continuing."

He stated that "the Al-Aqsa flood came after 75 years of occupation, and this is a legitimate right," noting that "in Lebanon, we cannot separate Lebanon from Palestine, nor the region from Palestine."