After Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah, was killed, his deputy, Sheikh Naim Qassem, issued a rebellious statement. Qassem insisted that Hezbollah prepares for Israeli attack to counter any ground offensive despite suffering heavy leadership casualties, including Nasrallah’s murder in an Israeli bombing. He emphasized that Hezbollah would continue its operations amid recent bombardments in Lebanon, asserting that Israel has not diminished the group’s military might.
Zeina Khodr of Al Jazeera reported from Beirut that following Nasrallah’s death, Qassem sought to assuage the anxieties of his followers. Regardless, Khodr stressed that Hezbollah has to reorganize following heavy leadership casualties caused by Israeli aggression. Israeli forces have caused significant damage to Lebanon, and the organization must now decide how to deploy its arsenal, which includes long-range missiles, against them.
Over the last two weeks, more than a thousand people have lost their lives as a result of the relentless Israeli assaults that have mainly targeted southern and eastern Lebanon. Since the Gaza crisis worsened in October, Israel has moved its focus from Hamas in Gaza to its northern boundary, where it engages in nearly daily exchanges of fire with Hezbollah. Israeli activities have increased fears of a full-scale war even though the country’s citizens are trying to return safely to their homes in the north.
According to temporary prime minister Najib Mikati, the government of Lebanon has pledged to end hostilities immediately. He made it clear that Lebanon is ready to send troops south of the Litani River to enforce Resolution 1701 of the UN Security Council, which aims to prevent Israel from going to war with Lebanon again.
