Hezbollah chief says group will decide timing of response to Israel's killing of Tabtabai

He describes the Israeli attack as “a blatant aggression”

Lebanon's Hezbollah deputy leader Sheikh Naim Qassem attends a memorial service for Mohammed Nasser, Hezbollah's senior commander who was killed on June 3 in an Israeli strike in south Lebanon, in Beirut's southern suburbs, Lebanon, Jul 10, 2024. REUTERS

Lebanon's Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem said on Friday the group has the right to respond to Israel's killing of senior commander Haytham Ali Tabtabai and will "set the timing" for any retaliation.

In a televised speech, Qassem described the Israeli strike that killed Tabtabai and several others as "a blatant aggression."