Hashem Safieddine, a relative of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, is widely seen as Nasrallah's likely successor as head of the Iran-backed group. He has been running the movement alongside Naim Qassem since Nasrallah's assassination. Safieddine is a prominent figure in Hezbollah, addressing funerals and events that Nasrallah had avoided for security reasons. He has strong ties to Iran and played a key role in the group's post-war reconstruction efforts. Safieddine has been declared a global terrorist by the U.S. State Department.