I have fully transcribed Nasrallah's speech from today. I thought the sott editors might want to publish it to drive traffic to the site, and that it would be of interest to those who prefer reading to watching videos. See below:
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Today will honour the memory of the fallen martyrs: the martyrs of the Islamic resistance in Lebanon, Hezbollah; the martyrs of the Lebanese factions fighting and resisting against the Israeli occupation; the fallen martyrs of Al-Qassam in Lebanon; Al-Quds Brigade in Lebanon, together with all the fallen civilian martyrs who were murdered at the hands of Zionists, including journalists.
I start by offering my deepest condolences to the families of the fallen here in Lebanon. We offer our condolences and at the same time congratulate you as your loved ones have won this honour – the honour of martyrdom. Many of you have lost loved ones: a father, a brother or a son. And I pray to God almighty to accept all our good deeds.
We offer condolences and congratulations at the same time, to all the families of the fallen martyrs in the Gaza Strip, West Bank, and on every inch where our brave martyrs have fallen, including those of Al-Aqsa Typhoon or Al-Aqsa Flood, that has extended on a number of fighting fronts.
I will not delve much on this as we will celebrate the Martyrs’ Day in a few days time. However, I must reiterate that those fallen martyrs have won, and it is sufficient to go to our holy scripture, the Koran, to read what God almighty said about them. And we are entitled to take pride in them and we must remain firmly with certainty that they are rewarded with paradise – with all the rewards you never envisaged or heard of. As God said in the holy scripture, those killed in the service of the cause of God will be rewarded with paradise. As is said to all believers: If you support and work for God’s cause, you will be rewarded with victory. The same in Alhambra and Surat: do not think those fallen to the service of the cause of God are dead; yet, they are alive, joyful with what they have been rewarded with, without fear or grief, abiding in God’s blessings that their good deeds were not wasted.
So our fallen martyrs are not dead. They are alive. Not in the Judgement Day, when all the human beings will be resurrected, no. Those fallen martyrs are now alive in God’s paradise. Do not think they are dead. They are alive, only you cannot feel them.
We congratulate all the fallen martyrs, the fighters, the civilians, the aggrieved, women, men, children, old and young. We congratulate them for this massive transition at the presence of God, paradise, where there is no Israeli oppression or American hubris - no killing, no massacres, no pogroms - and from this firm conviction, we congratulate them. And to their families we say, your loved ones have fallen in a battle on the face of the Earth. And if we are to look for a fully legitimate, lawful battle, from the legal, ethical or religious perspectives, we cannot find one but that battle fighting against the Zionist occupiers. This is a seamless battle at the human, ethical, or religious levels. It is the most evident, the most honest and the most noble to the service to the cause of God. This must be established in the first place.
We also say to the relatives of the fallen martyrs: we are proud of you. We take all pride in you. We have heard your statements of acceptance, submission, for the fall of your loved ones. And here lies our true strength before the arms. Our true strength lies in our firm belief, our unshaken conviction, our devotion and commitment to the cause. We are prepared to sacrifice. It is expressed in the voices of the fathers, mothers and children of the fallen martyrs.
Equally, we salute the epic people, unmatched and unrivalled: The people of Palestine; the people of Gaza. We have seen them on T.V. screens, man, woman, child, baby, crawling from underneath the rubble. Yet, he cries out saying all that is lost is to sacrifice for the sake of our homeland, for the sake of our cause. We cannot put this into words. We cannot express their fortitude, bravery, patience and resolve. The same applies to the residents of West Bank – patience, fortitude and resolve.
Ladies and gentlemen, today I will address you on the main topic in order to understand what happened and to make clear our position and answer and identify the liabilities and taking into consideration the Lebanese affairs which will require further details at a later point in time.
At the beginning, we must also salute all those who took to the streets, in support and in solidarity with the Palestinians, from all over the world: Arab, Muslim and Latin American countries. The people of different nations, specifically the strong and brave Iraqi and Yemeni armies who are now involved in this holy war.
How did we reach this point, and what is the backdrop of what happened on October 7th – Operation Al-Aqsa Typhoon?
I will address bullet points in brief. It must be mentioned in order to build up our stand, that the pain and suffering of the Palestinian people is not a secret to the whole world and there is no point to delve deeply into this. Yet, the recent years were harsh, especially with this radical, stupid and brutal government of Israel.
There are four main headlines on the Palestinian landscape.
The first is the Palestinian detainees: the thousands of Palestinian men and women, and even children, who are held behind Israeli bars, some for years. Many are on the verge of death, and no one is lifting a finger. And this radical government – this stupid minister – made the lives of the detainees and their families even worse.
The second issue is Al-Quds – Al-Aqsa Mosque – and what has been happening in the past weeks, namely, the few days before Al-Aqsa typhoon. These conditions were unprecedented since the occupation of Jerusalem in 1967.
Third, the unjust siege laid to Gaza. For more than 20 years, two million people living in an open concentration camp without any person in the whole world lifting a finger.
The fourth one is the recent perils and risks harbouring on the West Bank through the expansive, illegal Israeli settlement under the auspices of this stupid fool-government in addition to the daily detentions and demolitions of homes.
These are the four headlines that have impacted the Palestinians and the Palestinian resistance and no one in the whole world is lifting a finger. The United Nations Security Council, Organisation of Islamic Co-operation, league of Arab states, the European Union, none of the international blocs or organisations of countries: the Palestinian cause and all that is happening in Palestine were totally forgotten. The whole world turned a blind eye to them. Totally abandoned and totally forgotten.
In contrast, the policies of the enemy are more ferocious, oppressive and humiliating. Therefore, there must be a big event to shake this oppressive, occupying, usurping Zionist regime with their backers in Washington and London and to reopen these humanitarian issues before the eyes of the whole world and to resurface the Palestinian cause - the just cause - as the focus of the whole world.
Then came that glorious jihadi operation of October 7th: Al-Aqsa Typhoon. The operation was triggered by the fighters of Izz ad-Din al-Qassam, supported by the fighters of other Palestinian resistance factions in the Gaza Strip. So this is the first point in the backdrop of the event.
This glorious, blessed, large-scale operation was 100% Palestinian in terms of decision and execution - 100%. Even the Palestinians kept it secret from their fellow Palestinian resistance factions in Gaza, let alone other resistance factions across the Axis of Resistance. That element of secrecy was the lynchpin to this emphatic success of the operation. It came as a shocking surprise, unlike what is assumed by many, namely those who would like to drive a wedge among us.
That type of confidentiality and secrecy adopted by Al-Qassam does not anger us here. It was a requirement for the success of the operation, and this operation has no bearing on any decision or move to be taken by any other faction along the Axis of Resistance. This move, taken by Hamas, has stamped the true identity of the battle and also included all the enemies and hypocrites to raise any false claims, especially when they speak about the relations between the regional resistance factions. At any point in time when there is a battle, they start to speak about the Iranian nuclear program, the US-Iranian negotiations, to serve the agenda in the region. False claims. Yet, Operation Al-Aqsa Typhoon was 100% Palestinian in terms of decision and execution. The secrecy in which the entire operation was shrouded proves that it is a totally Palestinian cause, for the sake of Palestine and the people of Palestine, and it has no relation at all to any international or regional issue.
This operation also proves what we have been reiterating over the past years. Let the foe and friend understand, let it be understood by all enemies and friends, that the decisions of the resistance factions is in the hands of their own leader. Since the Iranian revolution, from Khomeini to Khamenei, have always been openly adopting and supporting resistance faction in Lebanon, Palestine and the region. However, they do not exercise any form of authority or mandate on these factions or their command and what happened with Operation Al-Aqsa Typhoon proved this fact. And those who are willing to interpret what is taking place today and what’s going to take place in the future, the true decision makers are the leaders of the resistance themselves to the service of their top and true cause.
Ladies and gentlemen, the third issue I would like to speak about is the repercussions of this event. What’s been happening on the battle field I believe you are all closely following. No doubt it was a brave, heroic, creative, perfect, massive operation, commended on all fronts and at all levels.
What are the repercussions of this glorious operation?
It caused a seismic shake – an earthquake – in terms of security, military, politics, diplomatic, even psychological. It has very profound strategic existential repercussions that will continue to have a bearing on the presence of this Zionist entity and the future o matter what the enemy’s government has done over the past days, and no matter what they will do over the coming days, it cannot change the impact and repercussions of Al-Aqsa Typhoon, strategically and historically on this Zionist entity and the future of the conflict in this region.
This operation has lifted the lid and uncovered many facts. However, speaking of the glorious repercussions and effects of this glorious operation requires hours, if not days. What’s more important is that it has exposed the frailty, weakness and total fragility of Israel. More frail than a spider’s web. I have read some reports on the Israeli media that the Israelis themselves have come now to believe, more than even myself, the Israelis have come to believe that Israel is more frail than a spider’s web. This fact was established and cemented by Operation Al-Aqsa Typhoon.
The United States administration represented by their president, ministers, state secretaries and even top brass, support this shaking entity in order to catch it’s breath, get back on it’s feet again, and to restore some action and to take the initiative which they had until now – and they had to call out for protection and support. The swift response by the United States to support and back Israel has proven how Israel is failing. From the very first days of Operation al-Aqsa Typhoon, against a totally besieged Gaza strip, the Israeli government was in a dire need for the US fleets to navigate to the Mediterranean for military and psychological support. Where is your fleet? Where are your warplanes? Where is the invincible army of Israel, the mightiest in the region? Where is all that?
The United States hurriedly despatched aircraft carriers and other pieces of their naval fleet. The US top brass, generals, military experts went running to the area to open the strategic weapon depots for the Israelis. From the very first days, Israel demanded new weapons, new missiles from the United States. From the first day, Israel demanded ten billion dollars. Is it a strong state, an invincible army, as claimed? A state the requires this amount of US and Western support? Heads of state, heads of government, top brass generals flocking from all over the world to provide moral support. This is what Al-Aqsa Typhoon has caused, this frail entity. These are some of the profound impacts of Operation Al-Aqsa Typhoon. All these must be evaluated and analysed in detail, which we don’t have time to do here. Yet, we must understand that all of the sacrifices in Gaza, the West Bank, and all fronts are really worthy.
All these achievements, outcomes and repercussions deserve all these sacrifices, simply for the reason that they paved the way for a new slate in our conflict with the Israeli enemy. It paved the way for many countries and nations within the region.
There was and there is another option. The other option is silence, waiting for more oppression, more siege, more death, more killing. This was the other option. That’s why we can say that the decision was wise, brave, prudent and worthy of all these sacrifices.
The next point. What was the enemy’s response to Operation Al-Aqsa typhoon? From the very first hours, it was clear that the enemy was lost, astray. You know, it’s a sabbath day and this was perfect timing by the commanders of Al-Qassam. It seemed that they had had a long drunken night, not only in the Gaza envelope but also in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. It took them hours to come out and they came out in an hysterical state, angry, in an insane fashion. That’s why when they had to recapture the settlement within the Gaza envelope, they perpetrated massacres against the Israeli settlements, not Hamas. Now we start to hear and read reports and investigations providing evidence that it was the Israelis who perpetrated the killing amongst the Israeli settlers and in the recent future, when the dust settles, the whole world will come to know that all those killed within Gaza envelope were killed by the Israeli army itself who were acting insanely.
In the wake of this big, seismic event, it seems that the successive governments of Israel do not learn their lesson. Unlike we always hear about Israel learning it’s lessons, they never learn from past lessons or experiences - especially their experiment or experience of wars against resistance factions in Lebanon and Palestine. What is taking place today took place in the past with some differences in July 2006 and the successive wars with Gaza at a different scale and different levels.
Among the gravest mistakes committed by the enemy in past - and it is taking place now - is setting high goals that they cannot achieve, setting high goals they cannot reach. They set as their top goal the annihilation of the whole of Hama. Then, speaking of toppling the government of Hamas. Then, eliminating the leaders of Hamas. Then, the military wing of Hamas. Now they are claiming to have as the top goal, to annihilate Hamas. And when they started to wake up, they started to speak of another goal: to bring home the captives.
Those who have had a long experience with different resistance factions in Palestine and Lebanon throughout history, have you seen at any point of time, the Israelis being capable of releasing captives without negotiations?? Never. What happened in Lebanon in 2006? Their declared goal was to wipe out Hezbollah. They were backed by the United States and the whole West, including Arab states. The goal at that time was to wipe out Hezbollah from Lebanon and to bring home the two Israeli captives.
The war extended for 33 days. Neither Hezbollah was wiped out, nor the two captives released without negotiations. The same thing is taking place today in Gaza, yet with a difference, and the difference is the massive pogrom, the massive amount of destruction and killing. In the July war, 1150 houses levelled, thousands of fallen martyrs, yet the resistance fighters on all fronts, backed by the Lebanese people, stood their ground.
The enemy, step by step, gave up on his goals. What is taking place in the Gaza Strip today proves the stupidity and impotency of the Israelis. They are wreaking killing among civilian Palestinians in Gaza. Most of those killed are women and children. The majority of the victims are civilians. Churches, mosques, school buildings, even hospitals are not spared. Everything is legitimised. Entire neighbourhoods are wiped out. School buildings, places of worship, and the whole world is standing by, watching.
Does this require an invincible army? For a whole month, the Israelis have failed to produce a single military achievement and when they started the ground operation, the same scenario of the July war in Lebanon, the random shelling, displacement of citizens, and the killing and the falling of thousands of martyrs could not bring the resistance to their knees. Then at that time, the Israelis started their ground operation and our fighters stood up to them. And the whole battle was followed by the whole world.
The same thing is repeated in Gaza. The Israelis are trying to launch a ground operation in order to sell to the whole world that they are launching a largescale ground operation. Even the limited moves were met by the bravery of the Palestinian resistance. We have all watched this resistance fighter approaching and placing the explosive on the top of the tank. How do you think the Israeli troops will be able to fight among those brave fighters? Nothing but confusion, fear and frailty. What the Israelis are good at over the past 75 years is nothing but perpetrating pogroms, massacres, with the aim of exercising pressure on the leaders of the resistance to wave the white flag and I believe the scenes we have been witnessing every day, every hour, every minute; women, men, children crawling from underneath the rubble, crying out and saying, “We are holding our ground, we are standing tall!” The end of this battle will be nothing but your defeat. By killing innocent civilians you will not achieve anything.
All that is taking place in the Gaza Strip, seen by the whole world, reveals and proves once again the brutal, barbaric nature of the Zionist regime of Israel – the usurping, occupying force that was planted in the region of Palestine on the grounds of the ill-fated Balfour Declaration to feed wars in the region, starting with Palestine and the Palestinian people, followed by the Egyptian, Lebanese and all the peoples of the region. After all these long years, as they tried to convince the whole world that this entity is a state of the rule of law, humanity and democracy, this is all proven false. We have witnessed that the victims, men and women, innocent civilians, the children of Gaza, have unmasked the truth of this barbaric regime backed by the western media whole are trying to convince our people to remain silent or even normalise with the Zionist entity.
This also reveals the direct responsibility and liability of the United States - the US hypocrisy. From day one, Biden claims to have spoken to the Israelis about humanitarian issues, civilians; all false claims. For a month, Gaza and the Gazans have been reeling under the brunt of barbaric, ferocious, brutal, ruthless, merciless aerial bombardment. They falsely claim that Hamas beheaded babies and they fail to produce a single piece of evidence, yet they remain silent against the images of thousands of babies and children torn apart in Gaza as a result of the Israeli missiles. Now all exposed. The whole West claiming and preaching about democracy, humanity, rule of law. It’s nothing but hypocrisy. It is a (inaudible) who are living in a jungle.
We all must establish this fact. The United States is totally responsible for the war raging in Gaza against unarmed, defenceless people. It is the United States that vetoes condemnation of Israel in the security council, the United States that stands in the way of a ceasefire in Gaza. It is the United States proving once again as described by Khomeini – it is the greatest Satan, the great devil, from Hiroshima to Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan, Palestine. The United States must be held liable and then penalised for all what has been perpetrating against our people and the people of the region. And there comes the decision of the Islamic resistance movement in Iraq to launch offences against American bases in Iraq and Syria considering that the United States is controlling the war in Gaza and it is the United States that must pay the price for the crimes perpetrated by the Israelis in Gaza and the Americans in Iraq and elsewhere. It is a wise decision by the resistance fighters in Iraq – prudent, blessed and wise decision.
Yesterday we also heard about new measures against the occupied Palestinian territories and this will be revealed in the coming days and hours. And here we salute all those noble men, noble fighters who are lending a helping hand to their fellow resistance fighters.
Ladies and gentlemen, it is the duty of every free, noble man in this world to establish and reiterate these facts in the public-opinion-warfare lead by the Western media that is falsifying and misinforming the public. We started to see the public opinion shifting as the whole world witnessed defenceless women and children torn apart. This is the least we can do in this battle of right against falsehood. The battle against ferociousness, brutality and barbarism, represented by the United States and Israel. Supporting Gaza and the Gazans is the very least humane requirement. Those who took to the streets in support, who rallied, those who donate, let alone those who fight, are under the duty towards Gaza and Gazans. Those who remain silent must reconsider their faith if they claim to be religious, and their honour if they claim to be honourable.
Each and every one, all and each, must live up to his own responsibility.
Speaking of which, in 1948, when the whole world abandoned the Palestinian people, this Zionist entity came into existence and pushed and the people of Palestine and the peoples of the region have paid the price for the establishment of this Zionist regime. Not only the Palestinians: the Egyptians, the Syrians, the Jordanians, Lebanese, have also paid a price. Lebanon has taken a bigger toll as a result of the existence of this usurping, occupying, Zionist regime. This is an established fact.
And again, today, what is taking place in Gaza is not a war like the others. It is not a battle like those of the past. It is not an event like those of the past. It is a decisive battle, an historical one. What is after this battle will not be like what was before it. This dictates that each and one shoulders his own responsibility.
Speaking of which, we must set the near-term goals which we should all work to achieve.
The first goal we should work for, day and night, is to end the war on Gaza.
The second one is to enable Gaza, the resistance fighters in Gaza and particularly Hamas, to triumph. These are the two short-term goals.
We should not lose sight of these two goals. The first, to cease the war, cease the aggression on the grounds of humanitarian, ethical, religious grounds, which are unquestionable. The second one is in the interest of everyone. It is in the interests of the Palestinians in the first place, and it is in the interests others also, as some are misinforming the public; some are claiming that if Gaza triumph means that Iran will triumph. If Gaza triumphs, it means the Muslim Brotherhood will triumph; this is false. The victory of Gaza means the victory of the Palestinian people and the victory of the Palestinian detainees. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre as well as Al-Aqsa Mosque. It is a triumph to all the peoples of the region. There is no time to delve into details, yet it is sufficient to indicate that the victory of Gaza is in the interest of Egypt, it is in the interest of Jordan. It is in the interest of Syria. And before all that, it is a national, patriotic interest of Lebanon.
And I believe this has been demonstrated enough over the past days. What if the opposite? What if Israel triumphs? What if resistance is defeated? What are repercussions for the regional states in Palestine and Lebanon in terms of security, politics, grass-roots popular level, and demographic level. Now, Israel is throwing threats at the Lebanese people. They are sinking in Gazan sands, yet, darting threats against Lebanon and the Lebanese. Using what? The blood of Gazan women and children by the destruction of mosques and churches in Gaza.
Speaking of responsibility, it is the responsibility of every free, noble man in this world, everyone all and each, should shoulder his own. Arab and Muslim states must spare no effort to at least put an end to the war. If you are prevented from acting, listen to your religion, your conscience, your values. You should all work for the top, prime goal. To end condemnation, statements are not enough. Sever relations, recall ambassadors. We cannot condemn and at the same to provide gas, oil and food supplies to Israel. Regretfully enough, in the past wars, the Arab and Muslim states calling for the cutting off of oil supplies to the United States. Now we are calling on the Arab and Muslim states to cut off oil and gas and food supplies from Israel. Stop your exports to Israel.
I have read some reports coming from Israel satirically saying that 22 Arab and Muslim states cannot deliver a single truck of supplies to Gaza or allow the departure of a single patient. Look how weak and impotent we are. Gazans are telling the whole Arab and Muslim countries, “We are not asking for your arms, weapons and fighters, but do you not have the least honour or dignity to deliver some aid?” Presidents, scholars, ministers, many high-level and top-notch officials, aren’t they capable of going themselves and staging sit-ins on the border of Gaza? They can turn the border into a platform to address the whole world.
Here I do not wish to label others as traitors or whatever, yet, we should not fall in despair. We should continue to call on our brothers. We should continue to place responsibility on the responsible, hoping at some point in time, the whole of humanity will listen to the sound of reason and their conscience will wake up.
The Islamic resistance in Iraq has started to shoulder it’s responsibilities towards what’s going on. They announced that they are going to engage in new measures. Our honourable brothers in Yemen, Ansar al-Anwar, the Yemeni people, the Yemeni army. The patient and brave Yemeni people against all the threats, Western and American, took a number of initiatives, launched drones and missiles. Even if dropped, at the end of the day, they will reach and they will hit their targets. They will reach El’ad, the south of Palestine, the Israeli army bases to the south of Israel. We salute our fellow resistance fighters.
Yet on our Lebanese front, some claim that we are about to engage in the war. I am telling you we have been engaged in this battle since October 8th. The Islamic resistance in Lebanon started operations the very next day after Al-Aqsa Typhoon. We had no knowledge, honestly speaking, like any other party in the world. We moved in to a second phase the very following day, operations were launched from shebar farms and the other surrounding hills, then extended all across the borderline with occupied Palestine. You have, and are still, monitoring the details of the daily operations.
What has taken place on our front is very important and significant.
Those who claim that Hezbollah should engage swiftly in an all-out war with the enemy may see what’s taken place on the border as minimal, but if we look at what’s taken place on our border objectively, we will find it sizable. Yet, I assure you, this will not be the end. This will not be sufficient.
What’s taken place on our Lebanese front, it is on one hand unprecedented since 1948 – the creation of this Zionist entity and the presence of Israeli posts on our borders – and since the illegal occupation settlements on the north of the occupied Palestine, on the borderline with Lebanon.
What has taken place since October 8th is unprecedented, that all the Israeli positions from the sea to the heights of Shebaa Farms and (inaudible) to reel under daily intensified offensive operations, targeting these posts and what’s in between: tanks, armoured vehicles, drones, clusters of personnel, and above all, technical installations which are the eyes and ears of Israel.
Since October 8th, the resistance in Lebanon is engaged in a true, genuine battle that can only be felt by those on the southern border. It is a true battle, different from all those in the past, separate from all those engaged by Lebanon, be it 2002 or 2006. It is a totally distinct and different battle in terms of tools, tactics, strategies, weapons, and even targets. A living proof to this fact is the number of our fallen martyrs who opted to remain on the forward fronts.
On Saturday 7th, immediately after Operation Al-Asqa Typhoon, the Israeli army started to pull back or retreat regular personnel from the border line. Let me explain what are the achievements. When we speak about fallen martyrs on the Lebanese front – almost 57 fallen martyrs – including those of the Lebanese brigades together with the Al-Qassam and Al-Quds brigades in Lebanon, let alone the civilians, that number and that blood, we should know what has been achieved in order to know how to move forward.
On the border on October 7th, the Israeli enemy started to pull out personnel from the border line with Lebanon – total moral collapse. For Gaza and the Gaza Strip that has been besieged for almost twenty years with very limited space, the Israeli army pulled out army personnel from West Bank – North Occupied Palestine – and called them towards the Gaza front. At the same time, they recalled or called up reservists. The operation that started to escalate up to that of yesterday, all these operations force the Israeli enemy to maintain their personnel on the border with Lebanon, if not deploy further reinforcement. Adding to that, the elite task force that was supposed to head towards the Gaza front are now employed on the Lebanese border. This means our operations on the border force the Israeli enemy to concentrate their personnel and forces and equipment on our borders which was suppose to deploy to Gaza.
Some might claim that we are taking a risk or gambling, yet it is worth it. Please just imagine if we restrict our action to rhetoric, statements of condemnation; then the Israeli enemy will deploy all of its forces to Gaza.
Now I have very exact figures of the total number of Israeli personnel, units, machinery, equipment, weapons, yet I requested for a brief, easy-to-understand- pieces of information.
The Lebanese front is now forcing the Israelis to amass one third of their entire army on our border. This is number one. The majority of these forces are the elite task force and regular personnel.
Second, half of the Israeli naval capabilities are now in Al-Qud opposite Haifa. Now, one quarter of the air force is dedicated to Lebanon. Half of their air defences – the Iron Dome, etc., - almost half of it is deployed around Lebanon. One third of all of their logistics were deployed to Lebanon. These are valid, accurate, exact numbers. I’m giving you easy-to-understand figures.
Secondly, the displacement of tens-of-thousands of illegal settlers and the evacuation of tens-of-thousands of others. 43 Illegal settlements were evacuated, and what is left now? Nothing but army personnel – no more civilians.
In the south, opposite Gaza, 58 illegal settlements were evacuated. All those evacuated from the south and north represent massive pressures – economically, psychologically and socially – and this will be a pressuring factor.
A third issue which is of no less importance: that the operations on the Lebanese border and Shebaa Farms have given rise to a state of fear and panic among the Israeli leadership – political and military – similar to the Americans, which we will talk about later.
This concern or fear that further escalation or an all-out war will exacerbate on this front, or they fear that the northern occupied Palestine front, the Israe li army will fall into an all-out war. This is a very likely possibility. The Israelis are taking this into consideration and it is part of their calculations and this is reflected in all the rhetoric and statements made by the American, European and even some Arab heads of state.
That state of uncertainty, fear and panic among the leaders of the enemy serves two purposes.
One: It causes our enemy to calculate their moves towards Lebanon. And here we speak about deterrents - we speak about genuine fear on the part of Israel. If only one single operation against an Israeli post or an Israeli tank or a cluster of personnel on the border, they wouldn’t have taken the (inaudible). Yet the Israelis are taking all these blows, adjusting and calculating their moves very meticulously, simply for fear of the future. So I reiterate, our presence on the front, our operations and readiness – our daily operations on the front – cause our enemy to remain fearful, hesitant and in panic. We have heard many statements from their ministers, speaking about and banking on the entire support of the US on which to wage a war on Lebanon. I assure you, to the enemy we say, if you think to assault Lebanon or take a pre-emptive strike against Lebanon, it will be the biggest act of foolishness in the history of your existence.
They think the Lebanese would fear what they are witnessing taking place in Gaza. We have seen this since 1948 to (inaudible) on the contrary, the scenes we see in Gaza will make us more resolved, more faithful, to remain steadfast, defiant in resistance and not to beg or fall to our knees, no matter what the price is.
A second, most important issue, through this state of panic and uncertainty, the enemy must calculate their moves while acting in Gaza, and they are. These are some of the results of our operations in the south of Lebanon. Let alone, the amount of material and human losses suffered by the enemy over the past weeks, these operations in the south, the blood of our fallen martyrs and the sacrifices by the fellow fighters and our honest, noble men who remain in the south or those who are temporarily displaced, they are all sacrificing to this battle, which is worthy of each sacrifice. It is an expression of our solidarity and support to Gaza and the Gazans. By the noble blood of the fallen martyrs, by standing steadfast, we are doing what we can to alleviate and lessen the pressure on them as the enemy is acting insanely - militarily and politically.
Here we come to the most important point.
Let the world know, for weeks, communication, pressures, from day one, that if we start any operation and if we open a front in the south, all these American fleets have come for us; we will be shelled by the US war planes. This was told to us on October 8th, and in some detail, when some Palestinian resistance fighters infiltrated from Lebanon following the first operation by them - we received a threat that the US war planes will bombard Lebanon. I assure you, many resistance fighters have infiltrated and many will continue to infiltrate. The threats we receive will not change our position.
Therefore, we started our operation on that front and the future of this front. Any escalation and any development of whatever nature hinges on two things, nothing more: the development of events in Gaza, it is the first factor, the development of events in Gaza. That’s why this front will evolve according to the nature of developments in Gaza and what is required.
The second factor that is in play is the conduct and the demeanour of the Zionist enemy towards Lebanon. And here, once again, I warn you not to go further as many civilians have fallen as martyrs. And this will bring us to the same equation: a civilian for a civilian.
Again, the demeanour of the enemy against Lebanon will be a factor in play. I am speaking openly, candidly and at the same time, with constructive ambiguity: All scenarios are open! All scenarios are open on our Lebanese southern front!
I reiterate: All scenarios are open! All options are laid out and we can adopt any at any point in time!
We, all together, must be prepared, ready and available to all these scenarios and options to come!
To the Americans, the United States administration, I say, darting your threats at Lebanon and other resistance in the region is pointless. Not the resistance movement or the resistance countries. It has reached a point that the message comes that if we continue to launch operations in the south, they will not only bombard Lebanon, but also bombard Iran. Can you imagine? To the Americans, I say, darting your threats on us in Lebanon will be pointless. Your naval fleets in the Mediterranean cannot and will not cause us to fear.
To you, I openly and candidly say that your fleets which you are using as a threat, we have already prepared what is necessary for them. You, the Americans, remember your defeats in Lebanon, Iraq, Afghanistan and your humiliating withdrawal from Afghanistan. Those who defeated you in Lebanon in the early ‘80s are still alive, backed and supported by their children and grandchildren.
If the US and Western politicians are calling for steering away from escalation, this cannot be achieved by threats against honest, noble resistance fighters defending the defenceless. The only cause is to end the war on Gaza. Here it is. Israel, your servant. You, the Americans, are capable of ending the aggression on Gaza because it is you who started it. If you wish to steer away from a regional war, you must act to end the aggression on Gaza. You, the Americans, are fully aware that if an all-out war breaks out, your fleet will be no good, your aerial war planes will be pointless, you will pay a heavy price with your interests, your fleet and your personnel.
Now, today, the whole world, in the name of the blood spilled, in the name of the defenceless civilians, in the name of churches, mosques and hospitals, in the name of humanity, in the name of human values, virtues, the whole world is required to act, genuinely and swiftly, to end the Israeli aggression on Gaza.
As the horizon is looming to our fellow Palestinian people and resistance fighters, I say, since the creation of the resistance fighter following the creation of the Israeli Zionist regime, we have been fighting a war of fortitude. We haven’t reached a knock-out victory. We still need time to be more realistic. We are winning victory by points, not a knock-out victory. This is what happened in 2002 and 2006 in Lebanon, and this is what happened with the Gazans, and similarly resistance fighters in the West Bank, Iraq and Afghanistan. Fortitude; patience; bravery; this is what we have and this is our strength. This is what the enemy lacks. This is what the enemy wants.
Victims crawl from underneath the rubble and say, “We all sacrifice to the service of the cause.” Do you believe that these Israeli people who were collected from the corners of the world diaspora, have you ever heard any of them saying that “My blood, my beloved ones and my home can be sacrificed for Israel!”? None.
We should remain steadfast in resolve and fortitude to prevent the enemy from achieving its targets. We should all now work together to end the war and aggression in Gaza. Then we will act for the resistance in Gaza to prevail.
First of all, based on our firm conviction of the divine promise given to us by the almighty, omnipotent Allah, that we will win victory. This is a promise, a divine promise, given by almighty Allah, the omnipotent. No matter what the sacrifice is, yet, we should be deservedly worthy of that. And this is proven by our sacrifices and our blood. And personally speaking and based on my personal experience with his Khamenei who repeated on more than one occasion that we all firmly believe in this divine promise, Gaza will triumph, Palestine will triumph, Palestine will prevail. He himself repeated the same words to us in the July war, when there was no victory looming on the horizon, and to our fellow brothers in Gaza. Despite all the sacrifice to all the Palestinian people, all the resistance peoples of the region, all those whose hearts are shaken by the blood of the children of Gaza, our unity, patience, fortitude and sacrifice we offer in blood to the service of the cause of God will be rewarded by nothing but emphatic victory.
Today as we honour and celebrate the memory of the fallen martyrs, we will meet soon to celebrate the victory of Gaza and the Gazans and the resistance fighters in Gaza.
And may God’s peace and blessings be upon you all.
