Tears for a terrorist as mosque announces prayer services for slain Hezbollah leader

A prominent Sydney Shi’ite prayer centre will hold a special service on Friday to mourn the ‘pure soul’ of Hashem Safieddine.

A prominent Sydney Shi’ite prayer centre has been condemned for holding a special service this Friday to mourn the “pure soul” of Hezbollah’s next leader, Hashem Safieddine, just days after the Israeli army confirmed the terrorist’s death in a Beirut air strike.

The Husayniyat al Sayeda Zaynab mosque in Banksia promoted the service in an Instagram story on Thursday, describing Safieddine as a “martyr” and “great leader”, saying that “verses from the Holy Koran will be recited for his pure soul.”

Safieddine, who previously served as the head of Hezbollah’s executive council, was widely tipped to take over the terror group after previous chief Hassan Nasrallah was killed in September.

An Instagram story promoting a prayer service for the death of Hezbollah leader Hashem Safieddine.

On Tuesday, the chief of staff of the Israeli Defense Force announced Safieddine’s death, saying, “We reached Nasrallah, his replacement, and most of Hezbollah’s leadership. We will know how to reach anyone who threatens the security of Israel’s citizens.”

Confirming the death, a Hezbollah spokesman said, “His Eminence Sayyed Hashem Safieddine has devoted most of his life to serving Hezbollah, the Islamic Resistance and its society.”

The Sayeda Zainab Centre in Banksia where the prayer service will take place. Picture: NewsWire / Monique Harmer

“When religious leaders in our communities glorify terrorists as ‘martyrs’ and ‘great leaders’ it explicitly encourages the young and the foolish to emulate their violent and horrific deeds,” Executive Council of Australian Jewry co-chief executive Alex Ryvchin said.

“There is a reason why our laws list certain organisations as terrorist. It is to protect Australians precisely from this sort of incitement and prevent these groups from recruiting and radicalising our fellow Australians.”

“If these laws are not enforced and these sorts of gatherings can take place in plain sight, our laws aren’t worth the paper they’re written on.”

In 2017 Safieddine was named as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist by the US State Department as well as by Saudi Arabia. Hezbollah has been designated as a terrorist organisation by Australia and over 60 other nations.

In September, overflow crowds spilt out of a number of local mosques when it held a similar service to mourn the death of Nasrallah.

The Sayeda Zaynab mosque was contacted for comment.