Biden says Nasrallah's death is justice for his victims, says de-escalation needs to occur

President Joe Biden said that the death of Hezbollah’s longtime leader Hassan Nasrallah is justice for his victims, and calls for de-escalation in the Middle East. 

“Ultimately, our aim is to de-escalate the ongoing conflicts in both Gaza and Lebanon through diplomatic means,” Biden said, according to CNN. "In Gaza, we have been pursuing a deal backed by the UN Security Council for a ceasefire and the release of hostages. In Lebanon, we have been negotiating a deal that would return people safely to their homes in Israel and southern Lebanon.”

He said that Nasrallah's death was a "measure of justice for his many victims."

The Israeli military announced Saturday that an airstrike it launched in Lebanon has killed Nasrallah, the man who led Hezbollah for more than three decades and built it into a fearsome terrorist organization.

Hezbollah has confirmed that Nasrallah was killed and Iran has announced that a general in its paramilitary Revolutionary Guard died in the airstrike as well, according to ABC News.

The general Iran said was killed was Abbas Nilforushan, 58, the deputy commander for operations in the Revolutionary Guard, who had been sanctioned by the United States. 

Nasrallah was killed Friday when Israel bombed a complex where Hezbollah leadership was meeting near Beirut, Israeli officials said.

“Hassan Nasrallah will no longer be able to terrorize the world,” the Israel Defense Forces said on the X social media platform.

Other Hezbollah leaders, including Ali Karki, the commander of its Southern Front, were also killed in the attack, Israel said.

Hezbollah did not immediately confirm the deaths. But the Lebanese Health Ministry said that six people were killed and 91 injured in the strikes.

Iran condemned the bombing, calling it a "blatant war crime," as it vowed to stand by Hezbollah.

“Israel is crossing Iran’s red lines, and the situation will become serious," a senior Iranian official was quoted by NBC as saying.

Nasrallah has led the Iran-backed Hezbollah since 1992, during an era when it engaged in significant hostilities with Israel and conducted terrorist attacks across the globe.

The United States designated Hezbollah as a foreign terrorist organization in 1997 under then President Bill Clinton.

Hezbollah is a “political, military, and terrorist organization capable of conducting attacks worldwide,” the Director of National Intelligence says on its site of designated terrorist organizations.