Hezbollah Chief, senior members reportedly under quarantine, may have coronavirus

The leader of the Lebanese Shi’ite militant organization Hezbollah may have been infected with the coronavirus and has been placed under quarantine, along with several other senior members of his group, according to media reports.

 Al Arabiya, reported on Wednesday that Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah had been quarantined for fear he had contracted the disease, apparently after it was spread to several of his close aides by an Iranian visitor.

Along with Nasrallah, the head of Hezbollah’s Executive Council, Hashim Safi Al Din, was said to have been quarantined after meeting with a senior Iranian official who had the coronavirus. Several other senior Hezbollah members have been confirmed as infected.

Iran, where the virus outbreak has been especially severe, is Hezbollah’s primary backer and has close contacts with the group.

Hezbollah has also taken emergency measures in the areas under its control in the Beirut suburbs and southern Lebanon, including setting up camps to quarantine patients. Many Shi’itse who live in the Hezbollah stronghold of Dahieh in Beirut have fled to mountainous areas to escape the virus.

Algemeiner