A memorial service for Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in Michigan featured praise for prominent terror figures as well as denunciations of the United States’ “terrorism.”
On Saturday, a memorial service for slain Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah took place at the Hadi Youth Community Center in Dearborn, Michigan. The event, which was live-streamed on YouTube, featured fiery speeches from local religious leaders and activists who praised Nasrallah and Iran’s leadership while condemning America.
Imam Usama Abdulghani, who led the memorial, declared that Nasrallah was now “happy,” and that his martyrdom “at the hands of the wickedest and most evil of Allah’s creations” was a “reward” from Allah for all of the “jihad’ he has waged.
Teacher and activist Tarek Bazzi delivered a passionate speech, celebrating not only Nasrallah but also the Iranian revolutionaries who shaped Hezbollah’s ideology. He praised Iran’s former leader Ruhollah Khomeini and current Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, calling Nasrallah “immaculate” and “perfect.”
Offering condolences to “the entire Muslim nation,” Bazzi challenged attendees to identify any other religion that has produced men as “godly” as Khomeini, late Revolutionary Guard Gen. Qassem Soleimani, slain Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, and others, naming several key figures revered in Hezbollah and Iranian circles.
In a sharp denunciation of U.S. policy, Bazzi accused American institutions — specifically the White House, Congress, and the Pentagon — of projecting their own “terrorism” onto “the soldiers and saints of the Lord of the universe.”
The service was also marked by local Shiite poet Hassan Salamey, who referred to Iran’s Supreme Leader Khamenei as “our greatest leader,” while warning he may possess Ali’s sword “on your throats in Tel Aviv.”
Dearborn, with its large Muslim population, has long been a focal point for anti-Israel demonstrations, drawing attention to growing radicalism within the U.S.
In April, a viral video showed anti-Israel protests in Dearborn, where demonstrators were captured chanting, “Death to America” and “Death to Israel,” during an International Al-Quds Day rally. The video stirred national controversy and intensified scrutiny of pro-Hezbollah activities in the U.S.
The clip showed activists condemning both Israel and America in the harshest of terms, with Bazzi insisting the chants were only logical.
In response, Steven Stalinsky, director of the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI), told Fox News that the Dearborn rallies have been happening for over 20 years and have become a “hotbed of hate,” where rallies and sermons can be seen “in support for Hamas, Hezbollah, [and] Iran.”
Nasrallah, who served as Secretary-General of Hezbollah since 1992, was a founding member of the Iran-backed Shiite terror group. Revered by Hezbollah supporters for leading the group through conflicts with Israel, Nasrallah was killed on Saturday in a precision airstrike on his Beirut bunker. Under his leadership, Hezbollah’s terrorism capabilities grew significantly.
Israel has been engaged in ongoing clashes with Hezbollah after the group launched attacks following Hamas’s October 7 assault on Israeli civilians, which left nearly 1,200 dead and more than 240 hostages taken.
Having actively sought to expand its influence beyond the Middle East, Hezbollah is designated a terrorist organization by more than a dozen countries and international entities, including major Western nations, members of the European Union, and most Arab League member states, due to its involvement in terrorist activities against American, French, Israeli, and other targets.
Former President Donald Trump has denounced Hezbollah, stating, “No terrorist group other than al-Qaeda has more American blood on its hands.”
On Sunday, Arkansas Republican Sen. Tom Cotton called for the elimination of “all of Hezbollah’s leadership” while insisting that the United States “should let Israel win” against Tehran’s key terrorist proxy in the region.
Joshua Klein is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at jklein@breitbart.com. Follow him on Twitter @JoshuaKlein.