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Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Qassem denies divisions within Hezbollah, says group ''has recovered'' — Naharnet
2025-07-10
[NAHARNET] Hezbollah "has recovered and is now ready" to confront Israel in case of an attack on Leb
...The Lebs maintain a precarious sectarian balance among Shiites, Sunnis, and about a dozen flavors of Christians, plus Armenians, Georgians, and who knows what else?...
, the group's leader Sheikh Naim Qassem
... the Grand Vizier of the Hezbullies...
 said in a televised interview.

The interview was recorded on June 11 but only broadcast Tuesday on Lebanese pan-Arabist news channel al-Mayadeen.

Qassem said that President Joseph Aoun is being "very pressured" by the U.S. and other Arab countries to disarm Hezbollah by all means, even by force. "But he knows this would lead to strife and would not be fruitful," Qassem told journalist and director of al-Mayadeen Ghassan Bin Jeddo.

"Lebanon is strong because of Hezbollah's weapons and we will not accept that Lebanon becomes weak," Qassem said, adding that the medium and heavy arms that have been destroyed during the war with Israel are south of the Litani River, in a hint that Hezbollah has weapons in other regions across the country.

Qassem denied internal divisions within Hezbollah. "Usually, when there are wings, you can see them, right? Because they fly... I haven't seen any wings yet," he sarcastically said.

Two months of full-fledged war with Israel last fall dealt heavy blows to Hezbollah, with its longtime leader Sayyed
...Arabic term meaning your/his lordship. Groveling in His Exalted Presence is encouraged...
 His Eminence Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah
...The late, lamented satrap of the Medes and the Persians in Leb...>
 killed in a September Israeli Arclight airstrike
...KABOOM!...
. Hezbollah also lost a strategic ally when Islamist-led rebels ousted longtime Syrian ruler Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad
Despoiler of Deraa...
.

"Hezbollah communicated with the Lebanese army when problems occurred in the Hermel area" on the Lebanese-Syrian border, Qassem told Bin Jeddo. "There were gunnies trying to enter Lebanese territory but Hezbollah was not involved and we have no intention of fighting them so we communicated with the army."
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Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Report: Over 2,000 Hezbollah fighters quit after Nasrallah's assassination
2025-07-05
[NAHARNET] Around 10,000 Hezbollah fighters have become completely unfit for combat since the eruption of the Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response...
 war, sources told al-Arabiya's al-Hadath channel.

''The latest war cost Hezbollah more than 4,000 deaths, including military commanders, politicians and members,'' the sources said.

''The number of Hezbollah's fighters is now estimated to be around 60,000,'' the sources added, claiming that ''around 2,000 fighters quit Hezbollah after the liquidation of the group's former secretary-general His Eminence Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah
...The late, lamented satrap of the Medes and the Persians in Leb...>
Moreover, the sources said ''Hezbollah has closed most of its training bases in the Bekaa and the South,'' adding that ''over 80% of the area south of the Litani River has become under the authority of the Lebanese Army.''

The sources added that ''Hezbollah's medium- and heavy-caliber weapons have either been confiscated by the Lebanese Army or destroyed by Israel.
Link


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Hezbollah Leader: Israel poses strategic threat to region and beyond
2025-07-04
[HODHODYEMENNEWS.NET] Sheikh Naim Qassem
... the Grand Vizier of the Hezbullies...
, the leader of Hezbollah, declared Israel not only an occupier of Paleostine but a strategic threat to Leb
...Formerly inhabited by hardy Phoenecian traders, its official language is now Arabic, with the usual unpleasant side effects....
, Egypt, Syria, Jordan, the broader region, and global stability.
Uh huh. Whatevs, dude.
In a televised address on Wednesday, Qassem emphasized that Israel's ideology, actions, and ambitions endanger Moslems, Christians, and Jews alike, destabilizing both regional and global peace.

He noted that the regime's ideology, behavior, and vision endanger both regional stability and global peace.

Qassem said that since the ceasefire agreement between Lebanon and Israel took effect, the regime has not stopped its aggression and has violated the agreement more than 3700 times.

He stressed that the regime must adhere to the terms it agreed upon with Lebanon and stop its acts of aggression.

The Hezbollah leader said the movement will not be swayed by threats, nor will it accept surrendering its weapons to Israel.

Qassem firmly rejected calls for Hezbollah to disarm, asserting that Lebanon's defense and illusory sovereignty are internal matters, immune to external pressures.

''We will not submit to humiliation, abandon our land, or compromise under threats,'' he stated, stressing that discussions about Hezbollah's weapons are a domestic issue, with no role for Israel in dictating terms.

Qassem said Hezbollah's resistance is a defense against a strategic threat impacting multiple nations, including Paleostine, Lebanon, Egypt, Syria, and Jordan.

Describing Israel as an existential danger, Qassem noted, ''Israel's threat is not limited to Moslems; it endangers Christians and Jews as well.''

He criticized the regime's ideology and actions as a risk to global peace and called on those who avoid confronting Israel to resist on humanitarian grounds.

''Coexisting with an expanding, invasive danger is impossible,'' he warned, emphasizing Hezbollah's resistance as rooted in human, Islamic, and national values for future generations.

LEBANESE STATE MUST ADDRESS ONGOING VIOLATIONS
In late June, Qassem stated that Israel's continued aggression, including attacks on Nabatieh, the targeting of civilians in southern Lebanon, and strikes on the money exchange sector, is now the Lebanese state's responsibility to address.

''The state must apply pressure and fulfill its duties,'' he urged, rejecting claims that Hezbollah provides pretexts for Israeli attacks.

He cited Israel's occupation of 600 km of Syrian territory, destruction of capabilities, and attacks on Iran
...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites. Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979. The nation is today noted for spontaneously taking over other countries' embassies, maintaining whorehouses run by clergymen, involvement in international drug trafficking, and financing sock puppet militias to extend the regime's influence. The word Iran is a cognate form of Aryan. The abbreviation IRGC is the same idea as Stürmabteilung (or SA). The term Supreme Guide is a the modern version form of either Duce or Führer or maybe both. They hate Jews Zionists Jews. Their economy is based on the production of oil and vitriol...
as evidence of unprovoked aggression.

''You must understand this cannot continue,'' Qassem told the public. ''Do you imagine we will remain silent forever? All of this has limits.''

What kind of a threat? This kind of a threat (update from the Times of Israel at 2:15 p.m. EDT)
Saudi report estimates 4,000 Hezbollah fighters killed in war with Israel, another 2,000 deserted after Nasrallah’s death

Saudi news channel Al-Hadath reports, citing unnamed sources, that approximately 4,000 Hezbollah operatives, including fighters, commanders, and senior figures, were killed during the Lebanon-based terror group’s war with Israel, which ended in a ceasefire in November 2024.

On top of that, the report says around 2,000 others deserted following the assassination of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in September last year.

Despite these losses, the report claims Hezbollah still maintains a force of approximately 60,000 members.

The outlet also reports that 80% of the territory south of Lebanon’s Litani River — once under Hezbollah’s exclusive control — is now controlled by the Lebanese Armed Forces. The terms of the ceasefire require that Hezbollah maintain no control in that area.

It says Hezbollah has also shut down most of its training centers in the Beqaa Valley and southern Lebanon, and much of its medium and heavy-grade weaponry has either been destroyed by Israeli strikes or seized by the Lebanese army.
Link


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
US gave Lebanon until today to respond to demand Hezbollah relinquish weapons, sources say
2025-07-02
[IsraelTimes] Lebanese officials are drafting a response to US demands for Hezbollah to relinquish its weapons across the country by November in exchange for a halt to IDF operations there, say two sources briefed on the matter.

The deadline has turned up the heat on the Iran-backed Hezbollah terror group, which was struck hard by Israel during last year’s war, is suffering a financial crunch, and faces pressure in Lebanon to disarm.

Washington’s demands were conveyed by Thomas Barrack, US special envoy to Syria and ambassador to Turkey, during a trip to Beirut on June 19.

The sources, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter, tell Reuters Barrack had shared a written roadmap with Lebanese officials and told them he expected to hear back by July 1 (today) on any proposed amendments.

The six-page document centers on the disarmament of Hezbollah and other terror groups, and urges Lebanon to improve ties with neighboring Syria and implement financial reforms, they say.

They say Barrack had urged Lebanese officials to seize the opportunity laid out in the roadmap as it “may not come up again.” He is set to return to Lebanon next week.

Barrack had not yet gotten Israeli approval for the roadmap, the sources say. There was no immediate response from the US State Department, Israel’s Prime Minister’s Office, or Israel’s Foreign Ministry to Reuters requests for comment.

How will Lebanon respond to US paper?

[Naharnet] President Joseph Aoun, Speaker Nabih Berri and PM Nawaf Salam have made “significant progress” in their deliberations ahead of U.S. envoy Tom Barrack’s second visit to Beirut, which is expected before July 10, Lebanese sources said.

Representatives of Aoun, Berri and Salam held a lengthy meeting Monday in Baabda and “unanimously agreed” on a draft paper in response to Barrack’s demands, the sources told Asharq al-Awsat newspaper, noting that the draft won the approval of Aoun, Berri and Salam and was also discussed between the Speaker and Hezbollah’s leadership.

The sources added that Lebanon will ask the U.S. to seriously press Israel in order to reach a real ceasefire, allow Lebanon to pacify the situation and “dispel Hezbollah’s concerns,” ahead of engaging in Barrack-sponsored negotiations that would “certainly lead to unanimity over arms monopolization, seeing as it is unacceptable for the talks to be conducted under Israel’s military pressure.”

“Hezbollah is still opening a window for obtaining guarantees, which is being comprehended by the three presidents, seeing us it needs to justify to its supporters the shift toward the monopolization of arms,” the sources added.

Hezbollah “needs to reassure its environment that giving up its weapons will be the reason behind Israel’s withdrawal and the release of its captives,” the sources went on to say.

Al-Akhbar newspaper meanwhile reported that Aoun, Berri and Salam have agreed that “there is no need to hold a special Cabinet session to discuss the U.S. paper, seeing as PM Najib Mikati’s government had agreed to the ceasefire agreement and its stipulations, and because Lebanon should not present additional commitments before knowing the next steps that will be taken by Israel.”

“The unified Lebanese stance is that Lebanon will inform the U.S. administration that Israel has to withdraw, release the captives and halt its daily attacks in return for a Lebanese commitment to tangible measures to control illegal weapons in the areas south and north of the Litani River,” al-Akhbar added.

But other sources told the daily that the U.S. and Israel “will come up with a lot of excuses to reject the settlement sought by Lebanon.”

Local and foreign parties are meanwhile trying to “intimidate” Lebanon by saying that “Israel is preparing to escalate its attacks with harsh airstrikes that could resemble the ferocity of the strikes that assassinated Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, in addition to possible additional land operations,” al-Akhbar said.

Sources close to a top Lebanese leader have, however, expressed optimism that a solution for the issue of Hezbollah’s arms has been put on track, seeing as Iran might have told Hezbollah and Berri to “commit to the requirements of Resolution 1701 with its accurate stipulations,” the Nidaa al-Watan newspaper reported.

Hezbollah is meanwhile “inquiring about reconstruction” and Israel’s “withdrawal” ahead of agreeing to a timetable for weapons handover, informed sources told the daily, with presidential sources seeing “unprecedented progress in Hezbollah’s stance that made it agree that its arms be discussed in Cabinet soon despite all its declared stances that are rejecting that.”
Link


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Israel says Hezbollah must disarm before any Lebanon peace talks can advance
2025-07-01
[IsraelTimes] Official says Jerusalem pleased with Lebanese effort to disarm terror group, but ‘it will be very hard’; Beirut says it needs US guarantees Israel will fully withdraw from Lebanon

An Israeli official on Monday said that while talks about potential peace deals with both Leb
...home of the original Hezbollah, which periodically starts a war with the Zionist Entity, gets Beirut pounded to rubble, and then declares victory and has a parade....
 and Syria are taking place, Beirut must "finish the issue" of disarming the Iran-backed Hezbollah terror group before any normalization can move forward.

Earlier Monday, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said that Lebanon and Syria are both prospective candidates to join the Abraham Accords alongside Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Morocco, which normalized relations with Israel in 2020. A deal with Sudan
...a Moslem country located in the Horn of Africa. It is noted for its affinity for rule by ex- or current generals, its holy men, and for the oppression of the native Afro population by its Arab conquerors. South Sudan, populated mostly by the natives, split off from Sudan proper, which left North and South Darfur to be oppressed by the guys with turbans...
 was also announced at the time, but is yet to fully materialize.

Both Syria and Lebanon do not recognize Israel and have been technically at war with it since its creation in 1948.

But before peace with Lebanon can move ahead, the Israeli official said, "We need to finish the issue of disarming Hezbollah. It will be very hard. I don’t know if they will succeed."

Still, the official indicated that the Lebanese Armed Forces have demonstrated they are serious about disarming Hezbollah.

"They definitely have limitations that are both subjective and objective, but we are under the impression that they are trying," the official said. "At least most of the army is trying. We see more-or-less effective enforcement, but you see that we are striking almost every day."

"That should say a lot," they said, adding that contacts with the US-led deconfliction mechanism in Lebanon continue "all the time."

Speaking on the issue of Hezbollah’s disarmament, a Lebanese official said Monday that the government seeks guarantees that Israeli forces fully withdraw from Lebanese territory in response to the US’s demand that Beirut formally commit to disarming the terror group.

Lebanese leaders who took office in the aftermath of a war between Israel and Hezbollah last year have repeatedly vowed a state monopoly on bearing arms while demanding Israel comply with a November ceasefire that ended the fighting.

The Lebanese government official told AFP that in a recent visit, US envoy Tom Barrack had presented the demand for Beirut to officially commit to start disarming the Iran-backed group as stipulated in the November agreement, along with a full Israeli withdrawal.

President Joseph Aoun, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, and parliament speaker Nabih Knobby Berri

...perennial Speaker of the Lebanese parliament, head of the Amal Shiite party aligned with Hezbollah, a not very subtle sock puppet of the Medes and Persians...
 — who is a key Hezbollah ally — "are preparing a response," said the official on condition of anonymity as they were not authorized to brief the media.

With Barrack, Washington’s ambassador to The Sick Man of Europe Turkey
...just another cheapjack Moslem dictatorship, brought to you by the Moslem Brüderbund...
 and special envoy to Syria, expected back in Beirut by mid-July, the Lebanese leaders "will demand a halt to Israeli violations of the ceasefire, Israel’s withdrawal from southern Lebanon, the release of prisoners [detained during the war] and the demarcation of the border," said the official.

According to the official, Barrack in his June 19 visit also asked that Lebanon work on securing its border with Syria and pursue economic reforms demanded by international creditors.

Aoun and Salam took power early this year as the balance of power shifted following the Israel-Hezbollah war that left the terror group — long an important player in Lebanese politics — severely weakened.

Lebanese authorities say they have been dismantling Hezbollah’s military infrastructure in the south, near the Israeli border.

Israel has continued to strike Lebanon despite the November ceasefire, claiming to hit Hezbollah targets and accusing Beirut of not doing enough to disarm the group.

According to the ceasefire agreement, Hezbollah is to pull its fighters back north of the Litani River, some 30 kilometers (20 miles) from the Israeli frontier.

Israel was to withdraw its troops from all of Lebanon, but has kept them deployed in five points it deems strategic.

Israel has remained at the five points ever since a ceasefire began on November 27, 2024, halting more than a year of hostilities initiated by the Lebanese terror group Hezbollah, including two months of full-blown war, during which Israel sent in ground troops across the northern border.

There was no comment from Beirut or Damascus, but the Lebanese government official told AFP normalization was not among the US envoy’s demands.
Link


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
IDF hits Hezbollah targets, blames terror group rocket fire for death of woman in area
2025-06-28
More on this story from yesterday.
[IsraelTimes] Israel says Hezbollah trying to restore operations at site near Beaufort Castle in south Lebanon

Israeli Air Force fighter jets hit a Hezbollah facility in the Beaufort Castle area in south Leb
...home of the original Hezbollah, which periodically starts a war with the Zionist Entity, gets Beirut pounded to rubble, and then declares victory and has a parade....
 on Friday, the military said. Lebanese media reported strikes in the area killed one woman, but the military said the death was caused by an errant Hezbollah rocket.

According to the IDF, the facility, used by the terror group to "manage its fire and defense array," was part of an underground Hezbollah site that was previously targeted in Israeli strikes.

"In recent days, the IDF identified attempts by the Hezbollah terror organization to restore the site, and therefore the terror infrastructure in the area was struck," the military said.

The IDF said that the "presence of this site and the attempts to reestablish it constitute a blatant violation of the understandings between Israel and Lebanon."

However,
a poor excuse is better than no excuse at all...
 the IDF later denied carrying out a strike on Nabatieh earlier today, instead blaming a Hezbollah rocket that was launched amid the strikes on the nearby facility.

"The IDF did not target any civilian building," said the military’s Arabic-language front man Col. Avichay Adraee.

"According to the information we have, the building was hit by a rocket projectile that was stored at the site, and was launched and went kaboom! as a result of the Arclight airstrike
...KABOOM!...
," he said.

"The Hezbollah terror organization continues to store its rocket projectiles near residential buildings and the residents of Lebanon, thereby endangering them. Hezbollah continues to endanger the residents of southern Lebanon in light of its refusal to hand over its weapons to the Lebanese state," Adraee said.

He added that "The Lebanese government bears responsibility for what is happening on its territory, in light of its failure to confiscate Hezbollah’s heavy weapons and rocket projectiles."

Additionally, a home in the southern Lebanon town of Houla, allegedly used by Hezbollah to observe Israeli forces, was demolished by IDF troops overnight Wednesday-Thursday, the military said. According to the IDF, the home belonged to Ahmad Ghazi Ali, a Hezbollah operative killed in a dronezap in Houla a week ago.

"The structure was used by the Hezbollah terror organization for military activity, including attempts to gather intelligence on IDF troops," the military said, adding that "the terrorists’ activity in the structure constituted a clear violation of the understandings between Israel and Lebanon."

The military said the demolition was carried out by the 769th "Hiram" Regional Brigade in a special operation.

Israel has continued to carry out targeted strikes on Hezbollah operatives and infrastructure since it signed a ceasefire with Lebanon in late November, alleging violations of the truce agreement. According to the IDF, over 180 Hezbollah operatives have been killed in that time.

Under the terms of the ceasefire, Hezbollah was required to withdraw its fighters north of the Litani River and dismantle all military infrastructure in southern Lebanon. Israel was to withdraw from Lebanon, while maintaining the right to strike threats to its security.

The IDF maintained a presence at five points near the border it said were necessary to ensure the safety of Israeli communities.

Since the ceasefire, the Lebanese state has been working methodically to dismantle Hezbollah’s infrastructure in the south of the country, and is estimated to have seized the majority of the terror group’s weapons stockpile in the same area.
Extrapolating from a Ynet report courtesy of Grom yesterday in comments, the civilian building in the Nabatieh area that went up as a result of a Hezbollah rocket launch was a cache that cooked off with noticeable secondaries.
An Nahar gives the Lebanese view of events:
A woman was killed and 20 other people were wounded Friday after Israel said it targeted Hezbollah "underground assets" in south Lebanon, despite a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah.

The Israeli army said it targeted Hezbollah "underground assets" in south Lebanon as it carried out a series of violent airstrikes on Nabatieh al-Fawqa and the heights of Iqlim al-Tuffah in south Lebanon.

The airstrikes came in two waves on the mountains overlooking Nabatieh and bunker buster bombs were used, Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency reported.

The strikes continued during the day as warplanes struck a region between the southern towns of Ansar and Zrariyeh.

A woman was killed and twenty other people were wounded as a residential building in Nabatieh al-Fawqa was hit with a missile that knocked out the building's top floor.

Israel later said it didn't bomb any building in Nabatieh and that the projectile that hit the building flew from a nearby Hezbollah depot after an Israeli strike.

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam strongly condemned the strikes, calling them a "blatant violation of national sovereignty" and a "threat to stability".

The strikes come a day after Hezbollah chief Sheikh Naim Qassem said Lebanon cannot submit to dictations nor surrender to occupation.

"This is our country, we want it dignified and we will resist for that," Qassem said Thursday.

Israel has kept up regular strikes on Lebanon, particularly in the south, since a November 27 ceasefire meant to end over a year of hostilities that left Hezbollah severely weakened. Friday’s strikes were more intense than usual.

The Israeli military said in a statement that its fighter jets struck a site used by Hezbollah to manage its fire and defense array in the area and is part of a significant underground project that was completely taken out of use.

The Israeli army said it identified rehabilitation attempts by Hezbollah beforehand and struck infrastructure sites in the area.

IDF releases footage that it says shows Hezbollah rocket caused deadly south Lebanon blast
[IsraelTimes] The IDF releases footage it says confirms that a Hezbollah rocket flew out of a facility belonging to the terror group, after it was targeted earlier today, and hit a home in southern Lebanon.

Following the Israeli strike on the Hezbollah site near Beaufort Castle, Lebanon’s health ministry reported one dead and 11 wounded in a blast that struck an apartment in Nabatieh.

“A review revealed that as a result of the strike, secondary explosions were identified, as well as the launch of a Hezbollah terror organization rocket that was stored at the site, which struck a civilian building,” the military says.

Related:
Beaufort Castle: 2025-05-31 Israeli attacks kill two in south Lebanon in latest flare-up
Beaufort Castle: 2025-05-18 Israel Says Hezbollah Commander Killed in Lebanon
Beaufort Castle: 2025-05-09 IDF: Jets target ‘significant underground’ Hezbollah site in south Lebanon
Related:
Nabatieh: 2025-06-21 Berri ''200% sure'' Hezbollah won''t join Iran war; Qassem says Hezbollah ''not neutral,'' will act as it sees fit; Israel defense minister warns after 2 Hezbie big turbans and a GI turban killed
Nabatieh: 2025-06-06 IDF strikes underground Hezbollah drone factories in Beirut after evacuation warning
Nabatieh: 2025-06-03 Hezbollah member arrested in South for spying for Israel
Related:
Houla: 2025-06-21 Berri ''200% sure'' Hezbollah won''t join Iran war; Qassem says Hezbollah ''not neutral,'' will act as it sees fit; Israel defense minister warns after 2 Hezbie big turbans and a GI turban killed
Houla: 2025-05-21 Nine injured including children in Israeli drone strike on Mansouri
Houla: 2025-05-20 IDF says it killed Hezbollah operative in south Lebanon drone strike
Link


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Berri ''200% sure'' Hezbollah won''t join Iran war; Qassem says Hezbollah ''not neutral,'' will act as it sees fit; Israel defense minister warns after 2 Hezbie big turbans and a GI turban killed
2025-06-21
[NAHARNET] Hezbollah will certainly not join the Israel-Iran
...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites. Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979. The nation is today noted for spontaneously taking over other countries' embassies, maintaining whorehouses run by clergymen, involvement in international drug trafficking, and financing sock puppet militias to extend the regime's influence. The word Iran is a cognate form of Aryan. The abbreviation IRGC is the same idea as Stürmabteilung (or SA). The term Supreme Guide is a the modern version form of either Duce or Führer or maybe both. They hate Jews Zionists Jews. Their economy is based on the production of oil and vitriol...
war, the group's ally Parliament Speaker Nabih Knobby Berri

...perennial Speaker of the Lebanese parliament, head of the Amal Shiite party aligned with Hezbollah, a not very subtle sock puppet of the Medes and Persians...
 has reportedly told his visitors.

Berri's visitors told al-Jadeed, in remarks published Friday, that the speaker is "certain" that Leb
...The Lebs have the curious habit of periodically murdering their heads of state or prime ministers...
 will not join the war.

On Thursday, Berri said Lebanon will "200 percent" not enter the war. "It has no interest in that and would pay the price if it did," he said, adding that Iran "does not need us."

A Lebanese government source also told al-Jadeed Thursday that Hezbollah will not join the fray after an Iranian official told al-Jazeera that Hezbollah would act if the United States intervened to back up its ally Israel.

- HEZBOLLAH CHIEF SAYS GROUP WILL 'ACT AS WE SEE FIT'-
Hezbollah leader Sheikh Naim Qassem
... the Grand Vizier of the Hezbullies...
 said on Thursday that the group would "act as we see fit" in response to the ongoing war between Iran and Israel.

In a statement, Qassem said Hezbollah was "not neutral" in the conflict between the two regional superpowers, saying that the group would "act as we see fit in the face of this brutal Israeli-American aggression".

Berri said Qassem's remarks are only aimed at showing "solidarity" with Iran and certainly do not mean that Hezbollah will join the war.

Earlier this week, Hezbollah political bureau member Mahmoud Qmati denied that Hezbollah would get involved and said that "Iran is strong enough and does not need military support from anyone".

- HEZBOLLAH HAS NOT FIRED A SINGLE ROCKET -
U.S. special envoy for Syria Tom Barrack on Thursday warned Hezbollah against getting involved in the war between Iran and Israel, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the entire "Shiite axis" is not responding to Israeli attacks on Iran and that "Hezbollah has not fired a single rocket".

Caroline Rose, a director at the Washington-based New Lines Institute think tank said that "Iran-backed proxies across the region — particularly Hezbollah— just do not have the capacity" to enter the fray. But Israel could still target them, she said.

Geagea tells Hezbollah's Qassem only state ''can act as it sees fit''
[NAHARNET] Lebanese Forces
A Christian political party founded by Bashir Gemayel, who was then bumped off when he was elected president of Leb...
 leader Samir Geagea
....Geagea was imprisoned by the Syrians and their puppets for 11 years in a dungeon in the third basement level of the Lebanese Ministry of Defense. He was released after the Cedar Revolution in 2005....
 said Friday that only the Lebanese state "can act as it sees fit" after Hezbollah leader Sheikh Naim Qassem said that the Death Eater group would "act as we see fit" in response to the ongoing war between Iran and Israel.

"Sheikh Naim, you cannot act as you see fit. Only the Lebanese government can do that because it represents the majority of the Lebanese people," Geagea said, adding that it is "absolutely unacceptable" for anyone to allow themselves to act as they like.

"Leb is a country and a state," Geagea said. "This is absolutely unacceptable, otherwise Lebanon will turn into a chaotic place with no rules or laws."

This comes after the U.S. special envoy for Syria warned Hezbollah against getting involved in the war.

Geagea urged Qassem to propose his ideas through Hezbollah's ministers in the government. "Only there, such matters can be discussed," he said.

FPM calls for ''Lebanon's neutrality'' in Israel-Iran conflict — Naharnet
[NAHARNET] The Free Patriotic Movement
Despite its name a Christian party allied with Hizbullah, neither free nor particularly patriotic...
 said Wednesday that Leb should not take part in the Israeli-Iranian conflict as the arch foes shot it out for the sixth day.

"The war in the region is concerning and is threatening peace and stability in the region and in Lebanon," the statement said, describing the Israeli strikes on Iran as an aggression and condemning it. "The FPM is against any aggression on the illusory sovereignty of any county."

The statement, despite the condemnation, stressed that Lebanon must stay neutral and should not get involved, in order to preserve national interests and the security of the Lebanese people.

"Lebanon's national interests require a full commitment to a policy that keeps Lebanon out of foreign conflicts, fortifies the domestic front, enhances stability, and prevents Lebanon from becoming an arena for regional festivities," the FPM said, as it urged international powers to restart nuclear talks and look for peaceful solutions that "preserve countries' illusory sovereignty and spare people in the region more destruction and divisions."

Israel’s defense minister warns Hezbollah to stay out of Israel-Iran war, IDF killed 2 more Hezbie emirs and a GI turban
[IsraelTimes] ‘If there is terror, there will be no Hezbollah,’ says Katz after leader of Iran-backed terror group says it will ‘act as we see fit’ amid Israeli aerial campaign

Defense Minister Israel Katz warned Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem to tread carefully Friday after the latter said his terror group would "act as we see fit" in the war between Israel and Iran.

"The Hezbollah leader hasn’t learned from his predecessors and is threatening to act against Israel," said Katz, referring to former Hezbollah chief His Eminence Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah
...The late, lamented satrap of the Medes and the Persians in Leb...>
, who was killed by Israel last
September.

"I suggest that the Lebanese proxy be careful, and understand that Israel has lost patience with the murderous Moslems who threaten it," Katz added, warning: "If there is terror — there will be no Hezbollah."

On June 13, Israel launched a campaign of Arclight airstrike
...KABOOM!...
s in Iran to decimate the Islamic Theocratic Republic’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs, which Jerusalem characterized as an imminent, existential threat.

Iran has responded with deadly barrages of ballistic missiles at civilian population centers and military targets in Israel.

Hezbollah, an Iran-backed proxy, has largely stayed out of the fray in the recent conflict.

The group was severely weakened by last year’s fighting with Israel and remains under the tight watch of the Lebanese government, which issued a warning to the group not to involve Leb in the war.

But Qassem said Thursday that the Iran-backed proxy is "not neutral" in the conflict between the two regional superpowers, saying that the group would "act as we see fit in the face of this brutal Israeli-American aggression."

The remarks came after US special envoy for Syria Tom Barrack warned Hezbollah against getting involved in the war, saying it would be a "very bad decision."

Since a ceasefire agreement went into effect in Lebanon in November 2024, Israel has continued to launch targeted strikes on Hezbollah operatives and infrastructure, claiming violations of the truce by the terrorist organization.

According to the Israel Defense Forces, over 180 Hezbollah operatives have been killed in Israeli strikes since the deal was reached.

The military has continued to attack Hezbollah targets in dronezaps on southern Lebanon since the fighting with Iran broke out.

The IDF announced Thursday morning it had killed Yassin Izz a-Din, commander of Hezbollah’s rocket artillery unit in the Litani River sector, in a strike on Barish, in southern Lebanon, the night before.

The IDF said he had advanced numerous rocket attacks on northern Israel during the war, and was involved in "attempts to restore Hezbollah’s artillery forces."

Northeast of Harish that same night, in Nabatieh, the IDF said it killed Mohammad Ahmad Khreiss, who it said was the commander of Hezbollah’s anti-tank unit in the Shebaa area.

"During the war, the terrorist advanced numerous attacks against the State of Israel," including an anti-tank missile attack on Mount Dov on April 26, 2024, which killed Sharif Sawaed, an IDF civilian contractor, the military said.

The IDF on Thursday killed a third Hezbollah operative in a strike, saying he had been involved in efforts to restore the terror group’s infrastructure in the Houla area.
Link


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
IDF says 2 terror operatives killed in Lebanon strike; mob attacks UN peacekeepers
2025-06-11
[IsraelTimes] Father and son said killed in southern village of Shebaa; IDF says one a Hezbollah member, second was in allied terror group.

A Hezbollah operative and a member of an allied terror group, identified by Lebanese authorities as a father and son, were killed in an Israeli dronezap in a southern Lebanese village on Tuesday, the military said.

The strike took place in the village of Shebaa, according to the IDF and Leb
...home of the original Hezbollah, which periodically starts a war with the Zionist Entity, gets Beirut pounded to rubble, and then declares victory and has a parade....
’s state-run National News Agency.

NNA reported that the strike also maimed a second son.

According to the IDF, the second operative was a member of the Lebanese Resistance® Companies, a smaller militia affiliated with Hezbollah.

According to the IDF, the two operatives were involved in "handling weapons used by Hezbollah for terror purposes and for observation of IDF soldiers in the area."

Their activity "constitutes a blatant violation of the understandings between Israel and Lebanon," the IDF added.

Lebanon’s health ministry also confirmed that two people were killed and one was maimed in the strike on Shebaa.

The al-Maydeen network, affiliated with terror group Hezbollah, claimed that one of those killed was a soldier in the Lebanese army.

Israel had warned on Friday that it would keep up its strikes on Hezbollah targets across Lebanon despite the condemnation expressed by the Lebanese government after a massive strike on south Beirut the previous night on the eve of the Eid al-Adha
...a major Moslem holiday, marked by animal sacrifice and ritual rioting...
 holiday, following an evacuation warning.

Iran-backed Hezbollah said the strikes leveled nine residential blocks. The Israeli military said they targeted underground drone factories after Lebanese authorities failed to act.

Israel has continued to carry out targeted strikes on Hezbollah operatives and infrastructure since it signed a ceasefire with Lebanon in late November, alleging violations of the truce agreement.v

According to the IDF, over 180 Hezbollah operatives have been killed in that time.

The ceasefire agreement brought to an end more than a year of fighting with the Iran-backed Hezbollah, including two months of open war in southern Lebanon late last year.

Hezbollah began attacking military outposts and communities in northern Israel unprovoked on October 8, 2023, in a show of support for fellow Iranian proxy Hamas
..the braying voice of Islamic Resistance®,...
 in Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response...
 after its assault on southern Israel a day earlier.

Under the terms of the ceasefire, Hezbollah was required to withdraw its fighters north of the Litani River and dismantle all military infrastructure in southern Lebanon. Israel was to withdraw from Lebanon, while maintaining the right to attack threats to its security.

Since then, the Lebanese state has been working methodically to dismantle the terror group’s infrastructure in the south of the country, and is estimated to have seized the majority of the terror group’s weapons stockpile in the same area.
Link


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Western, UN and Lebanese officials dismiss reports on ending UNIFIL mission
2025-06-11
[NAHARNET] Western and United Nations
...a lucrative dumping ground for the relatives of dictators and party hacks...
 diplomats dismissed as rumors claims that the U.N. Interim Force in Leb
...home of the original Hezbollah, which periodically starts a war with the Zionist Entity, gets Beirut pounded to rubble, and then declares victory and has a parade....
 (UNIFIL) was pulling out of the country, Saudi Arabia
...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula, largely made up of sand and oil rigs. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual haj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. Formerly dictatorial and steeped in Olde Tyme Religion, deferring to Salafist holy men on all issues, it has now done a 180 and is making a serious effort to modernize, so as not to be left in the sand by its Gulf Arab neighbors. The holy men have been shoved to the background and the nation is now still dictatorial but somewhat rational. That doesn't make them trustworthy, but it's a start...
's Asharq al-Awsat newspaper has reported.

The Lebanese government is expected to request the extension of the peacekeeping forces' mandate that expires in August.

A U.S. State Department spokesperson told Asharq al-Awsat that the reports about the withdrawal are ''inaccurate''. He did not elaborate further.

UNIFIL has been deployed in southern Lebanon since March 1978. Some amendments to its mandate were introduced after the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 1982 and again after the July 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah.

Debate rages every year over its duties as the deadline for renewing its mission approaches. Some countries have sought to grant the force more powers, which would put it at odds with Hezbollah that holds sway in the areas of its deployment.

Hezbollah was severely weakened after last year's war with Israel and the ensuing ceasefire agreement had demanded that the Iran-backed party remove its weapons from the South.

UNIFIL forces are deployed south of the Litani River and along the border with Israel. It boasts over 10,000 soldiers from some 50 countries, as well as 800 civilian employees.

UNIFIL spokesperson Andrea Tenenti told Asharq al-Awsat that the forces' greatest challenge is the lack of a long-term political solution between Lebanon and Israel.

UNIFIL continues to encourage the parties to renew their commitment to fully implementing U.N. Security Council resolution 1701 and taking tangible steps to address pending issues related to it, including steps that would lead to a permanent ceasefire, he added.
Link


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Reports: US, Israel mulling end to UNIFIL's presence
2025-06-10
[NAHARNET] U.S. officials are considering pulling American support from UNIFIL, the United Nations peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon, in a bid to cut costs associated with its operations, the Israel Hayom newspaper reported Sunday evening, with US sources later confirming to The Times of Israel that the option was on the table.

Should the U.S. move ahead with its decision to pull support from the U.N. body, Israel will back the decision, Israel Hayom reported, both out of a desire to align itself with the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump and in light of the Israeli security establishment's ''cooperation with the Lebanese army since the ceasefire in November,'' the Times of Israel said.

According to Israel Hayom, the presence of the Lebanese Armed Forces in southern Lebanon has proven relatively effective in ''beating back the threat of Hezbollah'' and keeping the group from rearming itself, making ''redundant'' much of UNIFIL's operations in the region.

Sources familiar with the matter told The Times of Israel that the U.S. has not yet made up its mind regarding its future support for UNIFIL, but that it wants to see major reforms, which could mean pulling support.

As UNIFIL's mandate is granted through a U.N. Security Council resolution each year, the U.S. could simply veto the next resolution, due to be put forward in August.

UNIFIL has been operating in southern Lebanon since 1978, when it was created to oversee the withdrawal of Israeli troops from the area following the end of Israel's first invasion of south Lebanon.

The U.N. peacekeeping force expanded its mission following the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah, allowing peacekeepers to deploy along the Israeli border to help the Lebanese military extend its authority into the country's south for the first time in decades.

Aimed at ending the 2006 war, Resolution 1701 also called for a full cessation of Israeli-Hezbollah hostilities and the disarmament of Hezbollah. UNIFIL's mandate has been renewed annually ever since, although critics have questioned the efficacy of the force.

Following the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon, which put an end to more than a year of hostilities with Hezbollah, including two months of all-out war, the Lebanese Army moved into southern Lebanon to enforce the terms of the ceasefire, which itself is based on Resolution 1701.

The resolution requires Hezbollah to withdraw its fighters north of the Litani River — about 30 kilometers (19 miles) from the border — and dismantle all military infrastructure in southern Lebanon.

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam told the Wall Street Journal last month that his government had achieved 80 percent of its objectives regarding the disarmament of Hezbollah and other militias in the country's south.
Related:
UNIFIL: 2025-06-09 US said to mull dissolving UN peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon
UNIFIL: 2025-06-07 Lebanese Army warns Israeli airstrikes may force it to freeze cooperation with ceasefire committee — Naharnet
UNIFIL: 2025-05-31 Berri voices support for UNIFIL after recent clashes with locals
Link


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
US said to mull dissolving UN peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon
2025-06-09
[IsraelTimes] Israel reportedly backs ending UNIFIL’s operations, considers its presence redundant as Lebanese army beats back Hezbollah; UN set to renew peacekeeping force’s mandate in August

US officials are considering pulling American support from UNIFIL, the United Nations
...where theory meets practice and practice loses...
 peacekeeping force in southern Leb
...The Leb civil war, between 1975 and 1990, lasted a little over 145 years and produced 120,000 fatalities. The average length of a ceasefire was measured in seconds. Only one of those statements is an exaggeration....
, in a bid to cut costs associated with its operations, Israel Hayom reported Sunday evening, with US sources later confirming to The Times of Israel that the option was on the table.

Should the US move ahead with its decision to pull support from the UN body, Israel will back the decision, Israel Hayom reported, both out of a desire to align itself with the administration of US President Donald Trump
...dictatorial for repealing some (but not all) of the diktats of his predecessor, misogynistic because he likes pretty girls, homophobic because he doesn't think gender bending should be mandatory, truly a man for all seasons...
 and in light of the security establishment’s cooperation with the Lebanese army since the ceasefire in November.

According to the outlet, the presence of the Lebanese Armed Forces in southern Lebanon has proven relatively effective in beating back the threat of Hezbollah and keeping the terror group from rearming itself, making redundant much of UNIFIL’s operations in the region.

Sources familiar with the matter told The Times of Israel that the US has not yet made up its mind regarding its future support for UNIFIL, but that it wants to see major reforms, which could mean pulling support.

As UNIFIL’s mandate is granted through a UN Security Council resolution each year, the US could simply veto the next resolution, due to be put forward in August.

UNIFIL has been operating in southern Lebanon since 1978, when it was created to oversee the withdrawal of Israeli troops from the area following the end of a conflict between the two nations.

The UN peacekeeping force expanded its mission following the 2006 Second Lebanon War between Israel and Hezbollah, allowing peacekeepers to deploy along the Israeli border to help the Lebanese military extend its authority into the country’s south for the first time in decades.

Aimed at ending the 2006 war, Resolution 1701 also called for a full cessation of Israeli-Hezbollah hostilities and the disarmament of Hezbollah. UNIFIL’s mandate has been renewed annually ever since, although critics have questioned the efficacy of the force.

Following the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon, which put an end to more than a year of hostilities with Hezbollah, including two months of all-out war, the Lebanese army moved into southern Lebanon to enforce the terms of the ceasefire, which itself is based on Resolution 1701.

The resolution requires Hezbollah to withdraw its fighters north of the Litani River — about 30 kilometers (19 miles) from the border — and dismantle all military infrastructure in southern Lebanon.

Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam told the Wall Street Journal last month that his government had achieved 80 percent of its objectives regarding the disarmament of Hezbollah and other militias in the country’s south.

At the same time, the IDF has continued to launch targeted strikes on Hezbollah operatives and infrastructure, alleging violations of the truce agreement. According to the IDF, over 180 Hezbollah operatives have been killed in that time.
Link


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Lebanon may propose that US envoy mediate to halt Israeli escalation, resolve disputes — Naharnet
2025-06-09
[NAHARNET] Officials close to President Joseph Aoun have floated the idea that a U.S. envoy carry out continuous negotiations between Leb
...Formerly inhabited by hardy Phoenecian traders, its official language is now Arabic, with the usual unpleasant side effects....
 and Israel to halt the Israeli escalation and try and find solutions for the disputed border points and the captives file, Kuwait's al-Anbaa newspaper has reported.

''They are relying on the fact that U.S. envoy to Syria Tom Barrack, who is of Lebanese origins, can carry out this mission in light of his closeness to U.S. Presiden Donald Trump
...The Hero of Butler, Pennsylvania...
 and his preliminary success in the Syrian file until now, and also because he greatly understands the Lebanese situation and the Lebanese thinking,'' al-Anbaa said.

''What's important is for Tel Aviv to accept such a proposal, seeing as it is reiterating its stance on the need to disarm Hezbollah north of the Litani River — while accusing Hezbollah of rebuilding its military arsenal through manufacturing drones,'' al-Anbaa added.
Link



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