Portugal Colonial - Tens of thousands vow support for Lebanon's Hezbollah at slain leader's funeral

Women wailed as a truck carrying the coffins of Nasrallah and Hashem Safieddine -- Nasrallah's chosen successor killed in another Israeli air strike -- slowly moved through the crowd, topped with two black turbans and draped in Hezbollah's yellow flag.

The September killing of the charismatic leader, who led Hezbollah for more than three decades, in a massive Israeli strike dealt a heavy blow to the Iran-backed group.

But Hezbollah, which dominated Lebanon's politics for decades, has long had a support base in the country's majority Shiite Muslim community.

As the funeral began at the Camille Chamoun Sports City Stadium, Israeli warplanes flew at a low altitude over Beirut in what Defence Minister Israel Katz said was a "clear message" against anyone who threatens Israel.

In a televised address to the ceremony, Nasrallah's successor Naim Qassem said Hezbollah would keep following his "path" and rejected any control of "tyrant America" over Lebanon.

"The resistance is not over, the resistance is still present and ready" to face Israel, he said.

Nasrallah speeches were blasted as the mourners raised their fists in the air and chanted "We are at your service, Nasrallah" and "We are loyal to the promise, Nasrallah".

Men, women and children walked in the biting cold to reach the site of the ceremony, that was delayed for months over security concerns.

One of them was Umm Mahdi, 55, who had come to see Nasrallah "one last time and see his shrine".

"This is the least we can do for Sayyed, who gave up everything," she added, using an honorific.

AFP correspondents at the stadium, which organisers said could accommodate roughly 78,000 people, was fully packed.

- 'Heroes of the resistance' -

As crowds gathered, the official National News Agency (NNA) reported Israeli strikes in Lebanon's south, including a location about 20 kilometres (12 miles) from the border, but also in the east.

Israel's military said it had struck "sites containing rocket launchers and weapons" in those areas.

The Israeli army in a tweet ahead of the start of the funeral said "the world is a better place".

Israel has carried out multiple strikes in Lebanon since a November 27 ceasefire deal with Hezbollah ended more than a year of hostilities including two months of all-out war.

The funeral comes days after the deadline for Israel to withdraw from Lebanon's south, with Israeli troops pulling out from all but five locations. Both sides have accused each other of violating the truce.

President Joseph Aoun asked parliament speaker Nabih Berri, a Hezbollah ally, to represent him at the ceremony, while Prime Minister Nawaf Salam was to be represented by a minister.

Hezbollah's weakening in the war was widely seen as having contributed to the election of Aoun, who named Salam as his premier last month after two years of leadership vacuum.

Iran's parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi were in attendance, with representatives of Iraq's main pro-Iran factions also expected to come.

Araghchi, in a speech from Beirut, described the slain leaders as "two heroes of the resistance" and vowed that "the path of resistance will continue".

Sam Heller of the Century Foundation think-tank said it was "important for the group to demonstrate that it remains a major social and political force, despite some of the setbacks it's been dealt".

Since Saturday, roads into Beirut have been clogged with carloads of supporters travelling in from Hezbollah's other power centres in south and east Lebanon.

Khouloud Hamieh, 36, came from the east to mourn the leader that she said was "dearest to our souls".

Despite the cold weather and massive crowds, she said she would not have missed the funeral for anything.

- 'Dearest to our souls' -

A funeral procession will take place to the site near the airport highway where Nasrallah will be buried. Safieddine will be interred in his southern hometown of Deir Qanun al-Nahr on Monday.

Hezbollah's Al-Manar television said the movement deployed 25,000 members for crowd control. A security source said 4,000 troops and security personnel were on duty.

Civil aviation authorities said Beirut airport would close exceptionally for four hours.

In the decades since, Lebanese have been divided over Hezbollah, with many criticising the group for initiating hostilities with Israel in support of Palestinian militant group Hamas.

C.Cassis--PC