Hezbollah chief's killing sparks protest in J&K, Mehbooba Mufti calls him martyr

Mehbooba Mufti announced that her party's campaign for the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly election will be called off on Sunday in solidarity with the people of Palestine and Lebanon, particularly in response to the killing of Hezbollah chief.

In Short

• Israeli strikes in Beirut kills Hezbollah chief
• Mehbooba Mufti expresses solidarity with Lebanon, Gaza
• Protest in J&K's Budhgam, Srinagar against Hassan nasrallah's killing

Protests erupted in Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday as people hit the streets condemning the killing of Hezbollah Chief Hassan Nasrallah in an airstrike by Israel in Beirut, Lebanon. A protest march held in Budgam witnessed a large number of people, including women and children, holding portraits of the Hezbollah chief.

Similar protests were held in Sringar's old city, and other areas of the state, after Israel announced the killing of the 64-year-old leader of the terrorist group, which was later confirmed by the outfit.

Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti meanwhile announced that her Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP)'s campaign for the Assembly election will be called off on Sunday, to condemn the killing of Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah. She asserted that her party stands with people in Lebanon and Gaza.

"Cancelling my campaign tomorrow in solidarity with the martyrs of Lebanon & Gaza especially Hassan Nasarullah. We stand with the people of Palestine & Lebanon in this hour of immense grief & exemplary resistance," she tweeted.

The 64-year-old leader of the Iran-backed terrorist group, Hezbollah, was killed in an Israeli strike on the group's headquarters in Beirut on Friday. Both Israel and Hezbollah confirmed the death, which delivered a significant blow to the group engaged in an armed conflict with Israel.

Senior Iranian general Abbas Nilforoushan of the Revolutionary Guards was also killed in the Israeli strikes on Beirut. Nasrallah's daughter, Zainab Nasrallah, and the commander of Hezbollah’s Southern Front, Ali Karaki, were also among those killed, according to reports.

Israel has conducted a series of airstrikes in Lebanon over the past few days, resulting in over 800 deaths and displacing many others. This escalation followed Hezbollah's barrage of rockets into Israel, which came after the detonation of thousands of pagers and walkie-talkies used by the group. Hezbollah has been targeting Israel since the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023. The Israeli army also continues its offensive in Gaza and other parts of Palestine.