Hezbollah leader chastises government over disarmament decision, warns of Israeli expansion

L'Orient-Le Jour

18 hours ago

Two days after the secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, Ali Larijani, visited Lebanon, Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem spoke during Arbaeen, which marks the forty days since the commemoration of Ashura, the anniversary of the death of Imam Hussein, issue further warnings to the Nawaf Salam governemnt and President Joseph Aoun, following the government's decision to disarm the party before the end of the year.
"The government bears responsibility for abandoning its duty to defend Lebanon and its lands. You are not excusable if you make such decisions regarding the arming of the resistance," Qassem said during commemorations held in Baalbeck. "Defend Lebanon! Let us be together to build the country, because it is not built with a single component ... Lebanon will have no life if you choose to put yourselves on the other side."
"Either Lebanon remains and we remain together, or it can say goodbye to the world," he added.
This escalation offsets the diplomatic tone Larijani used on Wednesday with Aoun and Salam, who criticized Iranian interference in the issue of restoring the state's monopoly on arms. Tripoli MP Ashraf Rifi was one of the quickest to respond to Qassem, warning Hezbollah against "threats of resorting to civil war."
A decision that 'serves the Israeli project'
Iran criticized the government's decision, which is in line with a U.S. proposal that also calls for Israel's withdrawal from sites its army still occupies in southern Lebanon.
"We reject any interference in our internal affairs, regardless of its origin, and we want the Lebanese scene to remain safe and stable, in the interest of all Lebanese, without discrimination," Aoun told the senior Iranian official in Baabda.
"The decisions of the Lebanese government should not be discussed in another country, because the decision-making center is the Cabinet, and the decision of Lebanon is made solely by the Lebanese, who accept neither tutelage nor diktat," Salam told Larijani at the Grand Serail. A few days before Larijani's visit, Beirut protested against statements by Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, Ali Akbar Velayati and the deputy commander of the Revolutionary Guards' Quds Force, who had taken a stand against the government's decision.
In response to these, Larijani said that Iran "does not interfere in Lebanese internal affairs" and that he intended to always "defend Lebanon's supreme interests." He then met with Qassem, who thanked him for his "support for Lebanon and the resistance."
In his speech on Friday, the Hezbollah leader continued to criticize the government's decision. "It deprives Lebanon, the resistance, and its people of defensive weapons in the midst of aggression. It amounts to facilitating the murder of resistance fighters and their families and driving them from their homes ... This government is carrying out an American decision and serving the Israeli project, whether it realizes it or not," adding, "Are you satisfied that Netanyahu congratulated you?"
This was a reference to comments made by the Israeli prime minister at a press conference last weekend, during which he stated that it was thanks to Israel's actions, which weakened the party, that the Lebanese government was "talking" about disarming it.
Banned from training the Lebanese army
Qassem also called on the Lebanese government to "come together to plan the response to the aggression and build the country, and not to submit to American-Israeli arrogance."
"Have you heard Netanyahu say he wants Greater Israel?" he added, referring to comments made by the Israeli prime minister. The expression "Greater Israel" alludes to biblical borders from the time of King Solomon, which would include the West Bank but also part of the territories located in neighboring countries, and which ultra-nationalist Israelis wish to occupy. In a speech this week, Netanyahu said he was "very attached" to this "vision."
"We hope that some Arab countries will remain silent instead of supporting the enemy in its strikes against the resistance," Qassem stated, while several Gulf countries reacted strongly to the Israeli prime minister's comments.
"The government has taken an extremely serious decision, in violation of the cohabitation pact ... The ministerial statement referred to a defensive strategy; where is it? You want to remove the legitimacy of arming the resistance? You cannot, because the resistance drew its legitimacy from the Taif Agreement, the Constitution, and the bloodshed, not from you," he said. He added that it was "forbidden to drag the army into internal discord; its record is impeccable, and its leadership does not wish to engage in it."
"We hold the Lebanese government entirely responsible for any discord that might arise. We don't want it, but some are working on it," the Hezbollah leader stated. Qassem also said that the party and the Amal Movement, an ally, would hold off on any demonstrations to leave the door open to any possible further discussions. Hezbollah supporters mobilized for several days in a row after the decision, while being supervised by the army.
Hezbollah suffered heavy human and material losses during the more than year-long war with Israel, following its decision to open a support front in Gaza on Oct. 8, 2023, did not prevent Qassem from speaking of the prospect of victory against his Israeli adversary, likening the party's fight to "the Battle of Karbala" in 680 AD, during which Imam Hussein and his men were killed. This rhetoric was already at the center of the commemorations organized in July for Ashura.
"We will fight this Battle of Karbala against the American-Israeli project, and we are confident of victory," he stated.