In his first speech after Assad’s downfall, Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem completely reversed the organization’s position on the Syrian dictator’s removal. Qassem extended an olive branch to groups that, the week prior, he described as takfiri agents of Israel. He also insisted Hezbollah’s position in Lebanon would remain unchanged.
Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem gave two speeches after the November 27 ceasefire that discussed Hezbollah’s next steps. In his first, he didn’t mention Hezbollah’s withdrawal from south of the Litani River. However, he made an about-face in his second speech, perhaps under Israeli military pressure and due to the situation in Syria. Qassem also discussed cooperating with the Lebanese government to reconstruct areas damaged during the war.
Naim Qassem delivered his second speech as Hezbollah’s secretary-general on the 40th day since Hassan Nasrallah’s passing. Qassem repeated many of the themes and claims from his previous speeches and stressed that Hezbollah will continue fighting.
On October 30, Naim Qassem delivered his first speech as Hezbollah’s new secretary-general. Qassem stressed his intention to continue in Nasrallah’s footsteps and that Hezbollah would continue its war with Israel until a ceasefire was reached on the group’s terms.
Naim Qassem became Hezbollah’s new secretary-general on October 29. His last speech as the group’s deputy secretary-general, given two weeks earlier, indicates that Nasrallah’s successor intends to continue in his predecessor’s confrontational path.