'Great loss for us all' - Massive crowds gather in Beirut to condemn assassination of Khamenei

"Thousands of people gathered in Ashura Square in Beirut's southern suburbs on Sunday to condemn the killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in the joint US-Israeli strikes on Tehran. Footage shows protesters holding up pictures of Khamenei, waving Iranian and Hezbollah flags, and chanting slogans such as "We will never submit to humiliation" and "America, you are the Great Satan." "Yes, we lost him, but he is now with the Imams and with Sayyid Hassan (the former Secretary-General of Hezbollah). Congratulations to him. God willing, we will triumph, and we will trample the heads of those who gloat over us," a protester remarked. "The death of Sayyid Ali (the Supreme Leader) is a very great loss, for he is a father to all and a father to the nation. And if God willed martyrdom for him, then our resolve will only grow stronger and more steadfast," another added. In a statement issued on Sunday, Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem mourned the death of Iran's Supreme Leader, calling his assassination 'a stain on the forehead of all humanity.' The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, commenting on Khamenei's assassination, declared, "This heinous crime will not go unpunished, and a new chapter will be written in the history of the Islamic world." The United States and Israel launched a joint attack on Iran on Saturday, with both US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowing to 'destroy Iran's missiles.' In response, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard announced "widespread missile and drone attacks" on Israel, and reports indicated that US bases in the UAE, Bahrain, Qatar, Iraq, and Kuwait were targeted."