Hezbollah chief: Lebanon’s power lies in resistance, US no neutral mediator

Despite Washington’s claims of seeking to support Lebanon’s independence, “experience has shown it isn’t a neutral mediator; rather, it’s the main sponsor of the [Zionist regime] aggression,” Sheikh Qassem said on Friday while addressing a local event in Beirut.

The Hezbollah chief added, “The United States has provided nothing to Lebanon”, referring to its silence on 5,000 Israeli violations of the US-brokered ceasefire agreement and the death of civilians in those strikes.

“We have heard no condemnation or call for Israel to stop its attacks. Instead, it [the US] merely justifies these violations,” Qassem said.

“United States is the main instigator of the Israeli aggression”

Sheikh Naim Qassem says the United States pretends to support Lebanon’s sovereignty while actually fueling Zionist regime’s aggression across the region.

He noted that Washington always pressured Lebanon to deprive it of its “strength, freedom and independence” to serve the interests of Zionist regime.

“Every time an American envoy visits Lebanon or an American official makes a statement, we see attacks intensify significantly.”

He also criticized remarks made by American officials regarding the Lebanese president’s order to army to confront any Israeli incursions, asking, "Has defending the land and strengthening sovereignty become a crime?"

Qassem hailed President Joseph Aoun’s decision, urging the government to discuss a plan to support the Lebanese army so that it can confront the Israeli aggression, and to set a timetable for achieving this goal in southern Lebanon.

“The government bears primary responsibility for national sovereignty — it must achieve it by expelling the Israeli enemy, liberating the land, rebuilding [the country], and freeing the prisoners,” he stressed, noting that achieving these goals will pave the way for Lebanon’s stability and prosperity.

Amid US and Israeli calls for the disarmament of Hezbollah, Qassem emphasized that the Lebanese resistance aims to protect the homeland, and that “we will not accept stripping Lebanon of its strength in favor of Israel.”

He noted that Zionist regime seeks to strip Lebanon of its strength in order to achieve the project of “Greater Israel,” adding that “no patriot in Lebanon would accept this”.

In August, Zionist regime’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that he feels a deep connection to "this vision" of a “Greater Israel,” referring to the Israeli-occupied Palestinian territories as well as parts of Egypt, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon, and described it as “a historical and spiritual mission.”

Sheikh Qassem called for pressuring Israel to abide by the ceasefire deal reached in November last year, saying any new agreement would only absolve Israel and reset its aggression.

He noted that Zionist regime’s attacks aims to prevent Lebanese people from returning to their hometowns, urging the other components of the Lebanese society to unite in order to confront the Israeli aggression.

Sheikh Qassem pointed to the importance of adhering to the Taif Agreement, negotiated in Saudi Arabia’s Taif in 1989, which ended the civil war in Lebanon.

He emphasized that the liberation of the land, the expulsion of the Israeli enemy, and national solidarity constitute the fundamental principles of the accord.“Those who own the land hold the future. Occupation is temporary — those who resist reclaim their land, while those who surrender lose it.”

Zionist regime and Hezbollah agreed to a ceasefire that took effect on November 27, 2024. Under the deal, Tel Aviv was required to withdraw fully from Lebanese territory — but has kept forces stationed at five sites, in clear violation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701 and the terms of last November’s agreement.

Since the implementation of the ceasefire, Israel has violated the agreement thousands times through repeated assaults on Lebanese territory. Lebanese authorities have warned that the regime’s violations of the ceasefire threaten national stability.