Hezbollah chief: Israel will have to leave Lebanon 'humiliated, defeated'
Hezbollah Secretary-General Sheikh Naim Qassem says Israel will have to withdraw unconditionally from every inch of Lebanese territory, leaving “defeated and humiliated.”
Speaking during Ashura commemorations in Beirut’s southern suburbs on Friday, Qassem reiterated that Israel must end its military operations by land, air and sea and fully withdraw from Lebanese territory.
“Israel has no option but to fully withdraw from our land,” he said, rejecting any arrangement that would allow an Israeli presence in Lebanon or lead to normalization between Beirut and Tel Aviv.
He said Hezbollah would accept “no normalization, no end to the state of hostility, and no gains for Israel.”
Lebanon and Israel are engaged in US-mediated talks aimed, among other things, at securing an Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanese territory.
As a new round of negotiations was held in Washington on Tuesday, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun reiterated that Beirut would accept nothing less than a complete end to the Israeli occupation of southern Lebanon.
Senior Israeli officials, however, have said Israeli troops will remain in southern Lebanon indefinitely.
The Hezbollah leader said Israel’s refusal to withdraw from Lebanese territory is part of a broader occupation project and warned that Lebanon would not accept any arrangement that compromises its sovereignty.
Addressing Lebanon’s political leadership, Sheikh Qassem called for cooperation based on national sovereignty, saying Hezbollah is “ready and extending our hand” to work with the government to secure a full Israeli withdrawal.
He added that “the resistance is strong and we are with you if you proceed on the path of Lebanese sovereignty.”
Qassem also said the recently signed Iran-US memorandum of understanding (MoU) provides an opportunity for Lebanese authorities to reinforce the country’s sovereignty.
Describing the agreement as “an official declaration of the defeat of the United States and Israel,” Sheikh Qassem said Iran is now shaping the future of the region.
He said Iran’s “strength, alongside the strength of the resistance fighters… helps create the necessary balance to break Israel and drive it from our land.”
Iran has maintained that Lebanon is an integral part of the preliminary agreement signed with Washington, warning that it will take all necessary measures to safeguard its interests, security and rights, as well as those of its allies.
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