Nasrallah Ridicules Israel’s Capability to Wage Wide War in Lebanon
The leader of Hezbollah refers to the significant human and economic losses among Israelis as mutual shelling continues along the border
Hezbollah‘s Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah asserted on Wednesday that the Israeli army is “exhausted,” emphasizing that mutual shelling between its fighters in southern Lebanon and the Israeli army prevents the Israeli state from waging war on Lebanon, while the Israeli government continues to threaten a broad attack to push away the Iran-backed group beyond the Litani River.
In a speech delivered to a crowd of his supporters, Nasrallah stated, “The Israeli army is exhausted, from the northern (Lebanese) front, the West Bank, and Gaza,” indicating that Israel lacks a sufficient number of soldiers to wage war on Lebanon.
Nasrallah‘s remarks come after Israeli airstrikes targeted areas deep in southern and eastern Lebanon, resulting in casualties, raising fears of escalation in Lebanon with Israel since the beginning of the Gaza war.
Hezbollah and Israel have been exchanging cross-border shelling almost daily since October 8, following the outbreak of the war in the Gaza Strip.
On Tuesday, Israeli aircraft carried out airstrikes in the Baalbek area in eastern Lebanon, about a hundred kilometers from the Israel-Lebanon border, resulting in the deaths of two Hezbollah members. Hezbollah later announced the shelling of an Israeli military base with dozens of rockets. Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir called on Defense Minister Yoav Galant to declare war immediately in response to the attacks.
Nasrallah emphasized in his speech that “victory belongs to those who endure and persevere, and it takes some time. This enemy shows signs of fatigue,” accusing Israel of imposing “severe secrecy on Israeli human and material losses” on its northern border.
Since the escalation began, the Israeli army has announced the killing of ten of its soldiers and seven civilians by fire from Lebanon, while at least 322 people have been killed in Lebanon, including 219 Hezbollah fighters and 56 civilians, according to a tally based on party statements and official Lebanese sources.
Nasrallah continued, “Those who want to assess what the resistance is doing on the Lebanese front must see the resistance’s deterrence of the enemy from going to war on Lebanon.”
He stressed that Israeli society is showing signs of fatigue, as well as its army and economy, affirming that the natural and logical choice in these battles on the fronts of the resistance is to bite the fingers, and victory belongs to those who endure.
Nasrallah asserts that Israel is unable to defeat Hamas, adding, “Netanyahu stands today in the sixth month of the aggression, saying that if we do not go to Rafah, we will lose the war.”
He emphasized that “even if Netanyahu goes to Rafah, he has lost the war,” stressing that “one of the signs of defeat for the Israeli enemy is that the occupation is negotiating with Hamas in the sixth month of the war.”
praised the efforts of the Houthis in Yemen and the militias in Iraq and Syria, saying, “The support fronts continue their work, and we commend the Yemeni front and its tremendous effects and blessings, especially on the enemy’s economy.”
He attacked the U.S. administration, describing it as foolish, explaining that it is required to stop the war, affirming that President Joe Biden can stop the aggression and war on Gaza with a stroke of a pen.
Hezbollah reiterates that stopping its attacks against Israel is linked to reaching a ceasefire in Gaza. However, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant recently emphasized that any ceasefire in Gaza would not deter Israel from its goal of driving Hezbollah out of southern Lebanon, warning that if a diplomatic solution to the situation is not found, “we will do so by force.”
The Israeli newspaper Haaretz said in an analytical article that the Israeli state is moving forward in a war against Hezbollah, despite it being destructive to both sides, due to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s desire to maintain his political position.
The current escalation between Hezbollah and Israel has led to the displacement of tens of thousands of residents in border areas on both sides.
