Al-Aqsa Flood a Battle of Existence, Destiny-shaping: Sayyed Nasrallah

By Al Mayadeen English

Hezbollah Secretary-General touches on Operation Al-Aqsa Flood and its pivotal and far-reaching impact in the region, addressing some issues concerning the Lebanese front.

Operation Al-Aqsa Flood has had a pivotal and far-reaching impact on the region, Hezbollah Secretary-General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said. 

Sayyed Nasrallah emphasized on Friday that "the Resistance front has become larger, broader, more comprehensive, and stronger than ever before."

"We are on a front whose future is bright and victorious," he said during the memorial ceremony for the late scholar Sheikh Ali Kourani, adding that "it is only a matter of time" before this front achieves victory.

He highlighted that the Israeli front is "experiencing a dire situation, the likes of which it has not faced in 79 years," as per Israeli officials.

Sayyed Nasrallah affirmed that Operation Al-Aqsa Flood "concerns the future of Lebanon, its resources, and its sovereignty."

The Lebanese Resistance leader stressed that the operation must be viewed "as a battle of existence and destiny-shaping, and we must all be involved in it," emphasizing that victory in this battle "will have positive effects on the region at all levels."

He affirmed that South Lebanon is at the heart of this battle, explaining that this front "is pressing, strong, and impactful" on the Israeli occupation and it "is part of the battle that shall shape the destiny of Palestine, Lebanon, and the region, beyond the narrow calculations preoccupying some Lebanese."

Hezbollah's chief called on the Lebanese people to pay attention to the assessments of Israeli generals, officials, and settlers about the effectiveness of the Lebanon front.

Sayyed Nasrallah indicated that Israeli leaders "came to the north to boast about pushing the Resistance kilometers away, only for the response to come with an operation just a few meters from the [Ramya] site," adding, "Had the Resistance fighters planned to enter the site, they would have."

Lebanon's backing of Palestine transcends sects

Sayyed Nasrallah addressed the circulating claims about "the Lebanese not supporting the [Lebanese] Resistance operations," asserting that any such support for the Lebanese front in its backing of Palestine transcends all sects and is not confined to any one group.

"Let everyone know their worth and speak on behalf of those they represent when claiming that the majority of the Lebanese people oppose the support front," he stressed.

He questioned those who claim that the Lebanese people refuse to support Gaza, asking, "What opinion poll proves these allegations?"

The resistance leader explained that despite the burdens and aggression suffered by Lebanon from the Israeli occupation entity since 1948, the society remained supportive, loyal, and sincere, attributing the Resistance's victories against "Israel" in May 2000 and July 2006 to this steadfastness.

Sayyed Nasrallah emphasized that the outcomes of the battle in South Lebanon "are far greater than any internal political wins," just as the liberation in 2000 and the victory in 2006 were.

He also denied claims that the southern Lebanese front is preventing the election of a president for the country, asserting that the battles in the South and Gaza are not linked to the presidential elections.

What has disrupted the election of a president in Lebanon are internal disagreements and external vetoes, Hezbollah Secretary-General explained.

"From the beginning, we said that we do not want to leverage what is happening in the South for internal affairs, but some [sides] are living in delusion," he indicated.

In a related context, Sayyed Nasrallah explained that the leaks about offers and temptations regarding drilling in exchange for halting the southern Lebanese front reveal the complicity of the United States in causing suffering for the Lebanese people.

He noted that the US is complicit in the electricity crisis in Lebanon and obstructing the issue of oil fields in Lebanese waters.

‘Netanyahu leading Israeli entity to the abyss’

Regarding “Israel’s” failure in Gaza, Sayyed Nasrallah explained that the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, is leading the entity on a downhill course, through his insistence on the war he has waged.

He commented on the statements of the War Cabinet minister and the man behind the “Dahiya doctrine,” Gadi Eisenkot, in which he said that an entire contingent (comprising several brigades) of the Israeli occupation army is waging battles against one battalion that the army claimed it had dismantled in Jabalia, stressing that “the fighting is difficult."

This, according to Sayyed Nasrallah, is clear proof that the Israeli army is drained, forcing it to enter Jabalia with an entire contingent, with the Rafah battle ongoing down south.

Further highlighting the dire situation the Israeli entity is mired in, Hezbollah’s chief reiterated the words of the head of the Israeli Central Bank who talked about a “catastrophe that would befall the entity,” depicting an upcoming state of crises and disasters as highlighted by army commanders and senior Israeli officials.

In a related context, Sayyed Nasrallah pointed out that “the stances of the countries whereby they condemned the aggression and ongoing massacres and recognized the State of Palestine are among the blessings of Operation Al-Aqsa Flood.”

Yemen

During his speech, Sayyed Nasrallah expressed his condolences to the Yemeni people following the latest American aggression on Yemen, which killed 16 and injured 41.

He pointed out that the Yemeni stance has been clear from the beginning that "no American aggression will affect Yemeni support and backing for Palestine and the Gaza Strip."

About Sheikh Kourani

Touching on the journey of Sheikh Kourani, the Lebanese leader noted that the late cleric put great efforts into religious propagation from Iraq to Kuwait, Lebanon, Iran, and many African and Arab nations, in addition to his participation in numerous conferences.

He added that Sheikh Kourani authored more than 60 books on theology, among other topics, deeming the Sheikh's achievements significant, including his introduction of modern technologies to the seminary and academic research. Sayyed Nasrallah emphasized that the most important achievement in this context is his encyclopedic work.

The Hezbollah chief pointed out that Sheikh Kourani "did not consider himself confined to a specific file or geographical boundaries" and was among the founders of the Islamic movement work starting in Iraq in the 1960s and one of the founders of the beginnings of clandestine Resistance work in the late 1970s.

Sheikh Kourani continued his resistance work for over 40 years, leading to the launch of the Islamic Resistance, Sayyed Nasrallah mentioned, adding that the cleric's faith in and support for the Resistance were absolute through statements and sacrifices, including his son, martyr Sheikh Yasser.

Elsewhere, the Resistance leader emphasized that Sheikh Ali Kourani was completely committed to the Palestinian cause "from the river to the sea," strongly believed in the Resistance's victory and the Israeli entity's downfall, and was eager to witness that day.