Statement from the General Secretary of Hizballah
His Excellency Sayyid Hasan Nasrallah
To the Nation, the Lebanese people, the resistance fighters, the
Zionists, and the Arab leaders.
Translated by Muhammad Abu Nasr
07/15/06 "Information
Clearing House" -- -- ...In this first address that I give in these
days following Operation True Promise, I would like to say a few
words – a word to the Lebanese people, a word to the resistance
fighters, a word to the Zionists, and a word to the Arab rulers. I
will not offer words to the international community because I have
never for one day believed that there is any such thing as an
international community, just as many in our nation feel.
First, I say to the Lebanese people: dear people – who embraced the
resistance, by whom the resistance was victorious, and for whom the
resistance won its victory on 25 May 2000 – this people who were the
makers of the first victory in the history of the Arab struggle with
the Israeli enemy, despite the basic inequality in forces, and in
spite of the fact that the majority of our Arab brothers and the
majority of our Muslim brothers abandoned us and despite the silence
of the whole world, this Lebanese people made the miracle of the
victory that stunned the world and humiliated the Zionists. Those
Zionists look upon this people in a special, unique way because they
accomplished in the history of the struggle with them a special and
unique accomplishment. The battle today is no longer a battle over
prisoners or the exchange of prisoners. It might be said that the
Zionist enemy is responding any time there is any operation where
men are captured anywhere in any part of the world, by any army or
any state that has borders and regulations. What is taking place
today is not a response to a capture of their soldiers; it is a
squaring of accounts with the people, resistance, state, army,
political forces, regions, villages, and families that inflicted
that historic defeat on that aggressive usurper entity that has
never accepted its defeat.
Today, therefore, this is a total war that Zionism is waging to
clear its whole account with Lebanon, the Lebanese people, the
Lebanese state, the Lebanese army, and the Lebanese resistance, in
revenge and reprisal for the victory they won on 25 May 2000.
Dear steadfast, mujahid, and noble people, I know that the
overwhelming majority of this people, in their minds, hearts, wills,
culture, thoughts, love, passion, and sacrifice are a people of
nobility, dignity, honor, distinction, and pride, not a people of
servility, subservience, submissiveness, and surrender. I say to you
that in this battle we are faced with two choices – not “we” as in
Hizballah, or as in the resistance, the Hizballah resistance – but
Lebanon as a state, a people, an army, a resistance, and a political
power – we are faced with two choices: either to submit today to the
conditions that the Zionist enemy wants to dictate to us all, using
the pressure, support, and backing it has from America, from around
the world, and, I’m sorry to say, from Arabs. Either we submit
completely to its conditions, which means taking Lebanon into an
Israeli age under Israeli domination – in total frankness this is
the extent of the matter – or we stand steadfast. That is the other
choice: that we persevere, that we persevere and confront....
During the Grapes of Wrath in 1996, or the clearing of accounts in
1993, in the beginning they had the upper hand and our situation was
much worse. But today, the situation is different. Believe me, and I
mean this, the situation now is different. All that we need is to
persevere, stand steadfast, and confront them united, and I know and
I will bet that the majority of our people are a people of
steadfastness, a mujahid people who can sacrifice, who have no need
for pep talks. What I’m saying now is only by way of completing the
idea, and affirming the choice, and clarifying what this means.
Now, as for my words for the resistance fighters, for my dear and
beloved brothers: upon them rest the hopes of every Lebanese, every
Palestinian, every Arab, every Muslim, every free and decent person
in this world, every oppressed, tortured victim of injustice, every
lover of steadfastness, courage, dignity, values, and nobility – the
characteristics they embody by their presence on the field of battle
and in their fight with this enemy... To the Zionists, to the people
of the Zionist entity at this hour I say to them: you will soon
discover how foolish and stupid are your new rulers, your new
leaders. They do not know how to assess reality. They have no
experience in this area. You Zionists say in opinion polls that you
believe me more than you believe your officials. So now I call on
you to listen well and believe me. Today we have persevered despite
the attack that took place last night in the southern suburbs.
However the attacks multiply in every village, neighborhood, street,
and home in Lebanon, there is no difference between the south Beirut
suburbs, the City of Beirut, or any home in south Lebanon, in the
Beqaa, or the north, or Mount Lebanon, or any corner of Lebanon.
The equation has now changed. I will not say today that if you
strike Beirut, we will strike Haifa. I will not tell you that if you
hit the south Beirut suburbs, we will hit Haifa. You wanted to get
rid of that equation, so now we and you have got rid of it in
actuality. You wanted open warfare, and we are going into open
warfare. We are ready for it, a war on every level. To Haifa, and,
believe me, to beyond Haifa, and to beyond beyond Haifa. Not only we
will be paying a price. Not only our houses will be destroyed. Not
only our children will be killed. Not only our people will be
displaced. Those days are past. That was how it was before 1982, and
before the year 2000. Those times have come to an end. I promise you
those times have passed. Therefore you must also bear the
responsibility for what your government has done, for what that
government has undertaken. From now on, you wanted open warfare, so
it will be open warfare. You wanted it. Your government wanted to
change the rules of the game, so let the rules then be changed. You
don’t know today whom you’re fighting. You are fighting the children
of Muhammad, of Ali, of al-Hasan, of al-Husayn, of the Prophet’s
family, the Prophet’s Companions. You are fighting a people who have
faith such as no one else on the face of the earth possesses. And
you have chosen open warfare with a people who take pride in their
history, their civilization, and their culture, and who also possess
material power, ability, expertise, knowledge, calm, imagination,
determination, steadfastness, and courage. In the coming days it
will be between us and you, God willing.
As to the Arab rulers, I don’t want to ask you about your history. I
just want to say a few words. We are adventurers. We in Hizballah
are adventurers, yes. But we have been adventurers since 1982. And
we have brought to our country only victory, freedom, liberation,
dignity, honor, and pride. This is our history. This is our
experience. This is our adventure. In the year 1982 you said and the
world said that we were crazy. But we proved that we were the
rational ones, so who then was crazy? This is something else and I
don’t want to get into an argument with anyone. So I tell them
simply: go bet on your reason and we will bet on our adventure, with
God as our Supporter and Benefactor. We have never for one day
counted on you. We have trusted in God, our people, our hearts, our
hands, and our children. Today we do the same, and God willing,
victory will follow. The surprises that I promised you will begin
starting now. Now, out at sea off the coast of Beirut an Israeli
military vessel that attacked our infrastructure, that struck the
homes of our people, our civilians; you can see it burning. It will
sink and with it dozens of Zionist Israeli troops. This is the
beginning. There will be a lot more said before the end. Peace be
upon you and the mercy of God!
General Secretary of Hizballah, His Excellency Sayyid Hasan
Nasrallah, to the Nation, the Lebanese people, the resistance
fighters, the Zionists, and the Arab leaders. Translated by Muhammad
Abu Nasr
Friday, 14 July 2006. Arabic original at:
http://www.nna-leb.gov.lb/phpfolder/loadpage.php?page=JOU214.html
http://www.nna-leb.gov.lb/phpfolder/loadpage.php?page=JOU214.html
14/07/06 GMT 20:29
