Hezbollah leader, Hassan Nasrallah. Illustration by Guilhem Dorandeu/L'Orient Today
Today, Friday, Jan. 5, at 2.30 p.m. Beirut time, Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah will deliver his fourth speech since the beginning of the war between Israel and Hamas on Oct. 7.
Why this speech is important:
It is the second time in 48 hours that the Secretary-General will speak, at a time when tensions are high in the region. In his speech on Wednesday, Nasrallah denounced what he called "a blatant Israeli attack" against the southern suburbs of Beirut, following the assassination of Saleh al-Arouri, the deputy leader of Hamas' political wing last night. He added at the end of this speech that this "will not go unpunished."
Nasrallah said that he would speak in more detail, on other subjects, in his speech today – without specifying further.
The speech today marks one-week since Muhammad Hassan Yaghi, "Abu Salim" died from a long illness. Known as Abu Salim, he was one of the party's founders in 1982, and executive assistant to Nasrallah. He had previously served in the Lebanese Parliament. A memorial ceremony is being held in the Hussainiya Shrine of Sayyida Khawla, daughter of Imam Hussein, in Baalbek. Nasrallah will speak, though via video link
When is the speech?: For those following the speech live in English, it will begin at 2:30 p.m. Beirut time (1:30 p.m. Paris time, 07:30 a.m. New York time) today, Friday, January 5.
How to follow LIVE: You can follow the speech live in English on this link.
Bonus: Our analysts will be behind their desks for real-time analysis of the Hezbollah leader's speech.
Some recommended readings before this speech:
- Between the lines of Nasrallah’s speech on Wednesday
- How Israel sent drones in Lebanon to assassinate Hamas deputy leader: What we know so far
- Did Israel eliminate a 'senior Hezbollah official' in Naqoura?