Threatening Israel, Nasrallah says Hezbollah not afraid of war, will fight with ‘no rules’

By Agencies and ToI Staff 3 January 2024, 8:08 pm

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Supporters of the Iranian-backed Hezbollah group raise their fists and cheer, as they listen to a speech by Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah speaking via a video link during a ceremony to mark the fourth anniversary of the assassination of Iran's Quds force General Qassem Soleimani, January 3, 2024. (AP/Hassan Ammar)

Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah is challenging Israel, saying the Lebanese terror group is not afraid of a fight and saying it will pull no punches if war does break out.

Nasrallah says his organization is not deterred from taking action, pointing derisively at a US warship that left the region and claiming Israel is struggling to make gains in Gaza.

He says Hezbollah’s cross-border shelling of Israel starting on October 8 had prevented a broader bombing campaign by Israel in Gaza, warning that there will be “no ceilings” and “no rules” to his group’s fighting if Israel launches a war on Lebanon.

He accuses Israel of being behind the assassination of Hamas No. 2 Saleh al-Arouri in a Beirut suburb a day earlier, calling it “a major, dangerous crime about which we cannot be silent.”

Addressing Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, Nasrallah says Israel “will not succeed in achieving the war’s goals.”

He claims falsely that Israel is hiding thousands of casualties from Hezbollah attacks on the northern border, and that “hundreds of thousands” have left the country since October 7.