Hezbollah: War on Lebanon to trigger mass exodus of illegal Israeli settlers in north

A high-ranking official of Lebanon's Hezbollah resistance movement has warned Israel of the consequences of waging an all-out war on Lebanon, stressing that large crowds of illegal settlers will have to evacuate the northern side of the 1948-occupied in case of such military confrontation.

“Every day, we hear about Israeli threats of expanding the scope of their aggression in order to repatriate displaced people to their homes. We hereby address them: If you want to increase the number of refugees, you can wage a war. A new war with Hezbollah will not help repatriation of displaced people; but will rather swell their number,” Hezbollah’s Deputy Secretary General, Sheikh Naim Qassem said on Monday.

“We (Hezbollah) will deliver a sharp response and will not leave the battlefield in case a war is launched against us,” he added.

Sheikh Qassem emphasized that Hezbollah is ready for an all-out war with Israel, and does not dread the Tel Aviv regime’s threats.

He went on to state that Hezbollah's retaliatory strikes against Israeli military sites in the northern occupied lands have achieved their objectives, warning the Zionist enemy, “Displaced Israeli settlers cannot return to the northern occupied territories until the war on Gaza winds down.”

Israel war on Lebanon 'matter of days'; Beirut suburb to 'look like Gaza': Knesset member

A member of Knesset (the Israeli parliament) claims that the regime would launch a wholesale war on Lebanon “in a matter of days.”

The Hezbollah deputy chief went on to say that Israel will face more problems, losses and internal conflict if the occupying regime insists on its genocidal war on Gaza.

The Zionist enemy cannot emerge victorious out of this long war of attrition, he pointed out.

Turning to Lebanon’s domestic affairs, Sheikh Qassem stated that election of a replacement for former President Michel Aoun should not be influenced by security developments along the border between southern Lebanon and the Israeli-occupied lands, calling on the various parties to take heed of Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri’s call for dialogue.

The Israeli regime has repeatedly attacked southern Lebanon since October 7 last year, when it launched a genocidal war on Gaza that has killed at least 40,939 Palestinians, most of them women and children, so far. Another 94,616 individuals have also been injured in the onslaught.

In retaliation, Hezbollah has launched near-daily rocket attacks on Israeli positions.

Some 614 people have been killed on the Lebanese border, including at least 138 civilians, according to an AFP tally. Israel says at least 24 soldiers and 26 settlers have been killed in the area.

The fighting has forced the evacuation of tens of thousands from the northern part of the occupied territories, amid rocket fire and shelling carried out by Hezbollah and allied Palestinian groups.

Hezbollah has already fought off two Israeli wars against Lebanon in 2000 and 2006. The resistance forced the regime to retreat in both conflicts.

Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:

www.presstv.ir