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‘He was like a father to us’: Hezbollah supporters mourn Hassan Nasrallah

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‘He was like a father to us’: Hezbollah supporters mourn Hassan Nasrallah

Beirut, Lebanon – On Friday evening, Mariam* was in her apartment with her teenage daughter and mother when her building began rumbling and shaking. Agonising screams and the buzzing of Israeli warplanes soon followed.

Israel had just launched a major air attack that killed Hezbollah’s leader Hassan Nasrallah, as well as an unknown number of civilians in Dahiyeh, the southern suburb of Lebanon’s capital Beirut.

Shortly after the strike, Israel called on thousands of civilians to “evacuate” from Dahiyeh, claiming they were living near Hezbollah operation centres.

Mariam quickly packed a few bags of clothes and fled to downtown Beirut, where she is now sleeping on the steps of a mosque with hundreds of other people displaced from her community.

But while Israel has upended her life, she said that nothing compared to the anguish of losing Nasrallah.

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“When I first heard the news, I thought it was a lie. I thought, ‘It can’t be true’,” she told Al Jazeera, holding back her tears. “Nasrallah was our brother and we always felt safe with him. Now, we don’t know what will be our fate.”

A tent installed by the scouts on Beirut’s Ramlet el-Bayda beach hosts people displaced by Israeli air strikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs [Philippe Pernot/Al Jazeera]

A brother, a father

Nasrallah became Hezbollah’s leader after Israel assassinated his predecessor, Abbas al-Musawi, in 1992. Al-Musawi, his wife and five-year-old son were killed by an air strike on their home.

Once Nasrallah took over, he quickly began expanding Hezbollah from a rebel movement to one of the most powerful armed groups in the world as well as a formidable bulwark against Israeli aggression.

Under his stewardship, Hezbollah liberated south Lebanon from Israel’s 18-year occupation, lending him the status of a hero throughout the region.

His charisma and shrewdness made him one of the most respected  – and feared – leaders in the Middle East.

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He then became a polarising figure – in Lebanon and the region –  after Hezbollah intervened in Syria’s civil war to rescue President Bashar al-Assad from a pro-democracy uprising that quickly turned into an armed conflict after al-Assad’s forces turned their guns on protesters, leading to the deaths of hundreds of thousands.

Throughout the war,  the Syrian government and Hezbollah committed atrocities, according to news reports and rights groups.

These reports damaged Nasrallah’s popularity across the region but his most fervent supporters stood by him out of fear that nobody else would be able or willing to protect Lebanon from Israel.

Many Lebanese Shia Muslims are now mourning a man they call a “brother” and even a “father” to their people.

In downtown Beirut, displaced families from Dahiyeh described Nasrallah as a “martyr” who gave his life to stand up to Israel.

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“I just want to listen to his voice again. He was like a father to us. He wasn’t just a politician,” said Nivine, a Hezbollah supporter and Dahiyeh resident who has been uprooted by the strikes.

“But we will continue on [Nasrallah’s path]. We will continue to fight to bring down Israel, which was always his wish,” she told Al Jazeera.

Lavine from Dahiyeh
Nivine, who has fled Israeli air strikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs, distributes Lebanese manakish to other displaced people at Beirut’s central Al-Amin Mosque [Philippe Pernot/Al Jazeera]

Lack of protection?

With Nasrallah gone and Hezbollah reeling from losing scores of senior commanders in recent days, many Lebanese Shia Muslims fear they have nobody to protect them.

“Don’t you see all the crimes of Israel? They are bombing and destroying everything, killing women and children. And no Arabic or Western country is intervening to stop it,” Nivine said.

But Nivine, like other residents from Dahiyeh, believes that Hezbollah will ultimately survive the recent blows from Israel.

Hassan, 25, spoke matter-of-factly about Nasrallah and the “resistance” – a term commonly referring to Hezbollah and other Iran-aligned armed groups that oppose Israel and the US role in the region.

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“We will continue and the movement will continue. People will be martyred, but [the resistance] will continue,” he told Al Jazeera.

Hassan added that he was particularly upset about Nasrallah’s death because he was such a major symbol of defiance. In his view, Nasrallah was the only world leader to help Palestinians in Gaza by opening a “support front” against Israel from southern Lebanon.

Hezbollah has said that its aim is to relieve pressure on Hamas, which is fighting for its survival after launching an attack on southern Israel on October 7, which killed 1,139 people.

Israel responded by attacking Gaza and killing more than 40,000 people since October.

Nasrallah’s decision to support Hamas cost him his life.

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“He stood up for Gaza,” Hassan said with resignation on the steps of a mosque. “I know he died. But he’s in a better place now than the one we are all living in.”

Displaced Lebanese in downtown Beirut, Lebanon
Children play on their family’s luggage in Beirut’s central Al-Amin mosque, where they found refuge from Israeli air strikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs [Philippe Pernot/Al Jazeera]

Uncertain future

Mohamad, a Syrian national who has been living in Lebanon since 2009, said that he fled from south Lebanon to Dahiyeh after Israel and Hezbollah began to exchange fire on October 8, 2023.

He said the bustling neighbourhood welcomed him, his daughter and his wife to the community soon after they arrived.

He, too, is mourning Nasrallah.

‘I was in shock when I heard the news. We will remember him as the one that stood up to the Zionists and went to war with Israel,” he told Al Jazeera.

“But now that he’s gone, there is fear and uncertainty. We don’t know what will happen. Will there be more bombing now across Beirut? Will the situation get worse? Or will it stop? Nobody knows.”

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Mariam, who fled with her mother and daughter, expressed the same ambivalence about her life and the fate of Lebanon. Everything dear to her has been torn apart due to Israel’s relentless bombing of Dahiyeh in the last 24 hours, she said.

She is mourning the loss of a neighbourhood that envelops a lifetime of memories – good and bad. She is also grieving the loss of several friends, many of whom were killed in Israeli strikes, and others who remain missing. But like many people from her community, she said Nasrallah’s death is the toughest news to swallow.

“We felt safe when he was here with us,” she said, her eyes filling with tears. “Now, we don’t know if we’ll ever be safe again.”

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Traffic to resume at Sweden’s second-biggest airport after drone scare

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Traffic to resume at Sweden’s second-biggest airport after drone scare

GOTHENBURG, Sweden, Nov 6 (Reuters) – A drone incident that prompted a sabotage investigation and halted traffic at Sweden’s second-largest airport ended on Thursday night with flights preparing to resume.

Drones have caused major disruption across Europe in recent months, forcing temporary airport closures in several countries. Some officials have blamed the incidents on hybrid warfare by Russia. Moscow has denied any connection with the incidents.

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One or more drones were observed at the Gothenburg-Landvetter Airport on Sweden’s west coast around 1641 GMT, authorities said earlier on Thursday, forcing more than a dozen flights to be rerouted or canceled.

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“Police have now informed us that the incident is over and we therefore plan to start traffic back up again,” state-owned airport operator Swedavia told Reuters in a text message.

“We have launched an investigation into suspected aviation sabotage,” the police spokesperson said.

On Tuesday, drone sightings forced closures of airports and a military air base in Belgium in what the country’s defence minister called a coordinated attack.
On Thursday, police in Sweden’s neighbour Norway said they had closed a probe into suspected sightings that caused a shutdown of Oslo’s airport in September, citing insufficient evidence that drones had been present.

In neighbouring Denmark, several airports, including Copenhagen, also closed temporarily in September due to reported drone sightings.

Reporting by Johan Ahlander in Gothenburg and Louise Breusch Rasmussen in Copenhagen; editing by Anna Ringstrom, Leslie Adler and Lisa Shumaker

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Violent mob attacks pro-Israel gathering in Toronto days after mayor’s ‘genocide in Gaza’ remarks

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Violent mob attacks pro-Israel gathering in Toronto days after mayor’s ‘genocide in Gaza’ remarks

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A pro-Israel event in Toronto turned violent on Wednesday when anti-Israel activists stormed a private venue, injuring one speaker and damaging property. The attack came just days after Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow faced criticism for describing “the genocide in Gaza,” a remark that Jewish groups warned could inflame tensions in the city.

The event, organized by the student group Students Supporting Israel at Toronto Metropolitan University and featuring Israeli military veterans, was moved off campus at the last minute for safety reasons. Despite the secrecy, about 40 masked agitators found the venue and forced their way inside, breaking glass and attacking participants.

Israeli-American speaker Jonathan Karten, who divides his time between Israel and New York, said he had come to Toronto to talk to students about his uncle, Sharon Edri, an Israeli soldier kidnapped and murdered by Hamas in 1996. “As soon as we got there, we were attacked by roughly forty protesters—terrorists, whatever you want to call them,” he told Fox News Digital. “Five managed to get into the main room. One had a drill bit. A guy broke through the glass door, I got knocked in the face, and we barricaded ourselves with tables and chairs until police came.”

CANADA’S ANTISEMITISM ENVOY RESIGNS, CITING EXHAUSTION AMID HATE SURGE

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Masked pro-Palestinian protesters storm a pro-Israel event in Toronto, breaking glass and attacking attendees, Nov. 5, 2025.

He said the protesters seemed to know the location in advance. “They were waiting for us before we even started speaking,” he said. “It’s not something I assumed would happen in a civilian population in a Western country.”

The assault took place less than a week after Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow said during an event that “the genocide in Gaza impacts us all.” The remark drew immediate outrage from Jewish organizations. “It’s shocking and dangerous language,” said Michael Levitt, CEO of the Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center, who urged Chow to apologize and clarify that Israel is not committing genocide. “Words like these validate hate and normalize the harassment of Jews,” he told The Algemeiner.

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Toronto antisemitism attack

Masked protesters violently disrupted a pro-Israel event in Toronto, breaking glass and attacking participants, Nov. 5, 2025.

According to the Toronto police statement, a group of protesters entered the private event without permission, damaged property, and caused attendees to fear for their safety. One person was injured by broken glass.

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Police arrested five people in connection with the attack. All are scheduled to appear in court in January.

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A Toronto police spokesperson told Fox News Digital that while antisemitic incidents remain the most frequently reported hate-motivated category in the city, they have declined 41% compared to last year.

Toronto antisemitism

Students try to block entrance from extremist protesters attacking an event organized by Jewish students in Toronot, Canada.

Despite his injuries, Karten said he intends to keep speaking on campuses. “We’re cautious, but not scared,” he said. “We have to make sure Jewish and Israeli voices are heard without fear.

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ICC confirms war crimes charges against Uganda’s rebel leader Joseph Kony

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ICC confirms war crimes charges against Uganda’s rebel leader Joseph Kony

The International Criminal Court confirmed 39 charges against Kony, paving the way for a trial if he is ever captured.

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Judges at the International Criminal Court (ICC) have confirmed war crimes and crimes against humanity charges against Ugandan rebel leader Joseph Kony, nearly two decades after the court first issued a warrant for his arrest.

Kony, who remains at large, faces 39 charges, including murder, sexual enslavement and rape, making him the ICC’s longest-standing fugitive.

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Judges from the ICC’s Pre-Trial Chamber III said there are “substantial grounds to believe that Mr Kony is criminally responsible for the crimes” committed in northern Uganda between 2002 and 2005, when he commanded the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA).

Besides crimes committed by his rebels, the judges said Kony could also be held responsible for 10 crimes he allegedly committed himself, linked to two women he forced to become his wives.

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“Mr Kony issued standing orders to attack civilian settlements, kill and mistreat civilians, loot and destroy their property and abduct children and women to be integrated into the LRA,” the judges said in their ruling.

The ruling marks the first time the ICC has confirmed charges in a suspect’s absence, meaning the case can formally proceed to trial if Kony is ever captured. Under ICC rules, a full trial cannot begin without the defendant’s presence in court.

Prosecutors said efforts to track down and arrest Kony, now 64, are ongoing.

Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) soldiers pose during peace negotiations between the LRA and Ugandan religious and cultural leaders in Ri-Kwangba, southern Sudan, in 2008 [File: Reuters]

The ICC’s decision followed a three-day hearing in September in which prosecutors and victims’ lawyers presented evidence and testimony without Kony present – an unusual procedure that set the stage for Thursday’s ruling.

Years of investigations and witness accounts formed the basis of the decision.

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Emerging from northern Uganda’s Acholi region in the late 1980s, Kony’s LRA combined Christian mysticism with an armed rebellion against President Yoweri Museveni’s government.

The United Nations estimates about 100,000 people were killed and 2.5 million displaced during the conflict.

Even after being pushed out of Uganda, LRA fighters launched deadly raids across South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Central African Republic, burning villages, looting communities and abducting tens of thousands of children – the abducted boys forced to fight and girls forced into sexual slavery.

Kony came back into international focus in 2012 when a viral video about his crimes led to the #Kony2012 campaign on social media.

Despite the global attention and years of military operations to apprehend Kony, he remains at large.

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