Israel must expect 'inevitable response' from Hezbollah

Photo: Ibrahim Amro Agence France-Presse Hezbollah supporters hold up portraits of slain commander Fouad Chokr during his funeral in the southern suburbs of the Lebanese capital Beirut, August 1, 2024.

Agence France-Presse in Beirut

Published at 11:40 a.m. Updated at 12:45 p.m.

• Middle East

The leader of Lebanese Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, said Thursday that Israel should expect an “inevitable response” from the Islamist movement after the assassination of its military leader, Fouad Chokr, on Tuesday near Beirut.

“The enemy must absolutely expect an inevitable response from us” to the assassination of Fouad Chokr, declared the leader of the pro-Iranian movement in a televised speech broadcast in live during the funeral of the military leader.

“Israel is not aware of the red lines it has crossed,” he added, in reference to this assassination and the death, attributed to Israel, of the political leader of Palestinian Hamas Ismaïl Haniyeh in Tehran.

“What happened in the southern suburbs is a aggression and not just an assassination,” said Hassan Nasrallah.

The strike on a building in a densely populated neighborhood killed seven people, including five civilians, three women and two children, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry.

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“On all the support fronts, we have reached a new stage, different from the previous stages, and which depends on the behavior of the enemy,” the Hezbollah leader continued, mentioning “an open battle on all fronts.”

Hezbollah and its regional allies have opened fronts against Israel, which they call a “support front” for Hamas, its ally, in the aftermath of the Palestinian Islamist movement's unprecedented attack on Israeli soil on October 7, which triggered the war in the Gaza Strip.

Hassan Nasrallah said his party had muted its attacks since Tuesday night, adding that they would resume Friday morning “as was the case before the martyrdom of Fouad Shokr” and “regardless of the response to the assassination.”

Hezbollah has in the past threatened to target deep into Israeli territory if it strikes Beirut’s southern suburbs.

Meanwhile on Thursday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel was at a “very high level” of preparations for any scenario, “both defensive and offensive.”

“We will make people pay a very high price for any act of aggression against us,” Netanyahu said, according to a statement from his office. office.

The Israeli army holds Fouad Chokr responsible for the deaths of 12 children and teenagers last Saturday, killed by a rocket attack on the Syrian Golan Heights, occupied by Israel. Hezbollah has denied any involvement.

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