2023-11-12 06:52:00
Hezbollah leader says his group will keep pressure on Israel as country seeks to “impose submission” on region
Supporters watch Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah deliver a speech in Lebanon on November 11. (Aziz Taher/Archyde.com)
The Secretary General of Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, delivered this Saturday his second speech since the war between Hamas and Israel began via video link from an undisclosed location, in which he addressed the situation in Gaza and the clashes in the border between Lebanon and Israel.
Nasrallah called the situation unfolding in Gaza “large, exceptional and dangerous in this region and in the world,” adding that what will emerge from the death and destruction in Gaza “will be generations and generations of resistance fighters.”
“This painful event and these serious crimes are an expression of Israeli revenge. This is the spirit of cruel revenge that has no moral, humanitarian or legal limits. It expresses the true nature of the entity (Israel),” he said.
“This is not just revenge, it is not just an attack. It is an aggression with an objective. One of the main objectives is to impose submission, not only on the people of Gaza, but also to subdue the people of Palestine, Lebanon and the region “Nasrallah said.
On the clashes on the border between Israel and Lebanon: Hezbollah attacks on Israeli territory have increased in number and used more advanced weaponry during the past week of cross-border fire between the Israel Defense Forces and the powerful Iranian-backed armed group, Nasrallah said in a speech Saturday.
“In the last week, without a doubt, there has been an increase in resistance activities (on the border). Numerically and in the types of weapons we use,” Nasrallah said.
In recent days, Hezbollah has attacked deeper into Israeli territory, he added, marking an escalation in the month-long flare-up, where fighting has largely remained within a 4-kilometer (about 2-mile) radius. around the border.
He said Hezbollah used self-detonating drones loaded with explosives in an attack on Israeli positions for the first time in the paramilitary group’s history. (The Israeli military has acknowledged Hezbollah’s use of an attack drone in at least one of the attacks claimed by the Lebanese armed group.)
Hezbollah has also fired Iranian-made Burkan missiles, which have a payload of up to 500 kilograms (about 1,100 pounds), at Israeli positions for the first time, Nasrallah said. Hezbollah this week released a video showing a large explosion caused by a Burkan missile.
Nasrallah accused Israel of hiding its casualty figures from Hezbollah attacks on the border.
“Lebanon’s southern front will continue to be a front of pressure (on Israel),” he said.
About the United States: Nasrallah accused the United States of “managing” the Israeli operation in Gaza and rebuked it for supporting its continuation.
Nasrallah said “all pressure” for a ceasefire should be directed toward the United States. He praised militant actions against US positions in Iraq in recent weeks and said they would only “cease” if the US pushes for a ceasefire in Israel.
The Hezbollah chief described Iranian-backed armed groups in Iraq, Yemen, Lebanon and Syria as having created “support fronts” for Hamas in Gaza.
CNN reported earlier this month that the US intelligence community believes – for now – that Iran and its proxies are calibrating their response to Israel’s military intervention in Gaza to avoid direct conflict with Israel or the United States while imposing costs to their adversaries. But the United States is also well aware that Iran does not maintain perfect control of its proxy group, particularly over the Lebanese Hezbollah, the largest and most capable of the various groups. Hezbollah is an ally of Hamas, the group that attacked Israel on October 7, and has long positioned itself as an adversary of Israel. U.S. officials are deeply concerned that the group’s internal politics could cause Hezbollah to escalate simmering tensions.
Nasrallah’s speech last Friday: In his first public and in-person speech since 2006, when a month-long war broke out between Lebanon and Israel, Nasrallah said “all scenarios” are possible on the Lebanon-Israel border, warning Israel against further escalation. of its operations there. He also urged a ceasefire in Gaza, calling it Hezbollah’s first priority.
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