The leader of the Shia Muslim movement Hezbollah gave a televised speech on Friday afternoon. There was great excitement about what Hassan Nasrallah was going to say and signal. To this day, he has not commented on the war between Israel and Hamas, even though Hezbollah is considered one of Hamas’s closest allies. The big fear is that Hezbollah will enter the war and trigger a major regional war. – This fight is completely Palestinian, for the Palestinian people. It has no connections to other regional conflicts, Hassan Nasrallah said at the start of the speech. The big question that has remained unanswered is whether Hamas was helped by Hezbollah to plan the shock attack against Israel on 7 October. – The decision to launch the attack was 100 percent Palestinian. And the hidden plans and the decision to go on the attack for everyone, the Hezbollah leader continued. The destruction was extensive in Kibbutz Kfar Aza, which was attacked by Hamas fighters on 7 October. Children and adults were killed in the attack, others were abducted and are still being held hostage by Hamas. Photo: EVELYN HOCKSTEIN / Reuters Paying tribute to the “martyrs” There have been horrific eyewitness accounts of what happened in the Israeli towns, villages and kibbutzim when Hamas fighters and Hamas supporters attacked. Nasrallah, although he claims he was not involved, calls the decision to attack Israel “correct”, “wise”, “brave” and “came at the right time”. He describes the ongoing war as “a decisive battle”. Large parts of the houses in the Jabalia refugee camp in the Gaza Strip lie in ruins after the Israeli attacks. Photo: Abed Khaled / AP Put the responsibility on the US Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has justified the ongoing attacks against the Gaza Strip as necessary to wipe out Hamas politically and militarily. Once this is done, others will take over the management of the Gaza Strip. Who “others” are, Netanyahu will not go into. Hassan Nasrallah claims the biggest mistake Israel makes is setting goals that cannot be achieved. The Hezbollah leader is well known for his anti-Israel and anti-American statements. He did not unexpectedly place the responsibility for the situation on the United States, and said that Israel is only a tool for the United States. The United States, for its part, through both President Joe Biden and Foreign Minister Antony Blinken, has repeatedly warned Hezbollah against interfering in the war. Nasrallah claimed that it is the United States that is putting obstacles in the way of a ceasefire and a halt to the attacks, despite the fact that both Blinken and Biden have asked the Israelis to calm down in their retaliation after the October 7 attack. In the speech, Nasrallah also said that the first goal is to stop the aggression against the Gaza Strip, and that all Arab countries must work tirelessly for this. The second goal is for Hamas and the people of Gaza to win. The Hezbollah leader said that if the rest of the world wants to prevent a major regional war, the attacks must stop immediately. In recent decades, Lebanon has been drawn into several conflicts between Hezbollah and Israel. People in the country therefore eagerly followed what the Hezbollah leader would say. Photo: ANWAR AMRO / AFP Warns Israel against attacking Hezbollah’s military is a very powerful force, equipped with modern weapons and many men – and far more effective than Hamas. Facts about Hezbollah Shia Muslim movement formed in 1982 as a response to Israel’s invasion of Lebanon. Led by Hassan Nasrallah (63). Supported by Iran, which also helped found the movement. Has a military and a political branch. The party and the organization are legal in Lebanon, are represented in the national assembly and have been part of governments. Considered a significant power factor in the Middle East and believed to be in possession of a relatively large number of short- and medium-range missiles. Is on the US terror list. Hezbollah’s military branch is listed on the EU’s terror list. Source: NTB Hamas has asked its ally to get involved, but so far the response from Hezbollah has been limited. They have fired rockets at various targets in northern Israel, but to a lesser extent than feared. Nasrallah said in the speech that it is important to keep Israeli forces “occupied on other sides” than the Gaza Strip. Yesterday, 19 rockets were sent against various targets in northern Israel. The Israeli Defense Forces responded by attacking infrastructure, a military headquarters, rocket launch sites, weapons depots and military facilities on the Lebanese side. But the Hezbollah leader made it clear that the “restraint” need not last, strongly warning Israel against attacking Lebanon. And he added that they are not afraid of the American warships that have positioned themselves in the Mediterranean. – American warships do not scare us. And to the United States we say this, those who fought you in Lebanon in the early 1980s are still alive. The fence around an Israeli military installation on occupied land in southeast Lebanon, which was destroyed in a Hezbollah rocket attack. Photo: Hussein Malla / AP The hostages must be freed Nearly 240 hostages – after Israel has gained more insight into all those who disappeared during the attacks on 7 October – are trapped in unknown locations on the Gaza Strip. – Israel can only get the hostages back through negotiations, was the comment from Hassan Nasrallah. The Israeli government and defense leadership believe the intense bombing of the Gaza Strip will pressure Hamas to release them. According to the White House, there is talk of temporary stays during the war in certain places to bring in help for civilians and try to get hostages released. Follow the development in news’s News Center:
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Hezbollah chief claims they were not involved in the attack against Israel – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
