Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem said the group would not allow itself to be disarmed on Saturday as he addressed supporters marking one year since the killing by Israel of his predecessor Hassan Nasrallah.

The charismatic leader was killed in an Israeli air strike on the southern suburbs of Beirut on September 27, 2024.

Without Nasrallah and with much of its military capability destroyed by Israel, Hezbollah’s grip on Lebanese politics has weakened, and Beirut has ordered the army to disarm the group.

“We will never abandon our weapons, nor will we relinquish them,” Qassem told the tens of thousands of supporters gathered at the tomb of the former chief on Saturday.

“We are ready for martyrdom,” he added.

Iran-backed Hezbollah, weakened by a deadly war with Israel last year, has organised

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