Rejoicing in Hassan Nasrallah's Death

Text in Western Neo-Aramaic

Following Israel’s killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, scenes of joy were to be observed primarily in areas of Syria that are or were controlled by insurgent factions: namely, northwest Syria (Idlib and its environs, north Aleppo countryside) and the southern province of Deraa (officially under full government control, but where former insurgents and pro-opposition sentiments are still prominent). These sentiments are of course understandable: the supporters of the cause of revolution and bringing down the Syrian government detest Hezbollah for having supported the Syrian government in the civil war. Yet I would add two points of caution.

First, it is unwise to extrapolate these celebrations to the region at large, claim that ‘much of the Middle East’ was somehow celebrating Nasrallah’s death, and start waxing about imminently bringing a new order to the region. This sort of portrayal overlooks those who mourned his death (e.g. many Shi‘a in Lebanon, Iraq, Syrian supporters of the Syrian government, supporters of the ‘resistance axis’ in general etc.). In addition, many others had little sentiment to express on the killing itself. While it is fair to say that Hezbollah no longer has the same popularity in the wider Arab world that it enjoyed back in 2006, it is also clear that many in the region do not see Israel’s actions in Lebanon as primarily being about targeting Nasrallah and Hezbollah, but rather an Israeli military campaign against Lebanon in general. As such, while they might not mourn Nasrallah’s death, they nonetheless denounce Israel on the grounds that it is violating Lebanon’s sovereignty and committing war crimes in the country. They also express suspicion that Israel intends to seize and occupy parts of Lebanon.

Second, even with regards to those celebrating, one should be cautious in presuming that the assassination means love and appreciation for Israel. On the contrary, many of those celebrating have also been enraged by Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, and effectively see both Israel and Hezbollah as two evil actors who should ideally destroy each other.

The following short text on the killing of Hassan Nasrallah is part of my ongoing quest to document the endangered Western Neo-Aramaic language (traditionally spoken in three villages in the Qalamun region near Damascus city). The post reflects the sentiment of someone who is originally from Bakh‘a (one of the three Western Neo-Aramaic-speaking villages) and is currently displaced in northern Syria. I include my English translation below. Any parenthetical insertions in square brackets are my own.