https://arab.news/w5tv6
- Hezbollah chief: 鈥淭here will be no place safe from our missiles and our drones鈥� in Israel in the event of broader war
- Nasrallah also threatened Cyprus for the first time, saying it had been allowing Israel to use its airports and bases for military exercises
BEIRUT: Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah on Wednesday warned 鈥渘o place鈥� in Israel would be spared in case of full-blown war against the Lebanese group, and threatened Cyprus if it opened its airports to Israel.
鈥淭he enemy knows well that we have prepared ourselves for the worst... and that no place... will be spared our rockets,鈥� Nasrallah said in a televised address.
Israel must expect 鈥渦s on land, by sea and by air,鈥� he said.
鈥淭he enemy really fears that the resistance will penetrate Galilee鈥� in northern Israel, he said, adding that this was possible 鈥渋n the context of a war that could be imposed on Lebanon.鈥�
Israel and Hezbollah, a powerful Lebanese movement allied with Hamas, have traded near-daily cross-border fire since the Palestinian militant group鈥檚 October 7 attack on Israel which triggered war in the Gaza Strip.
The exchanges between the foes, which last went to war in 2006, have escalated in recent weeks, and the Israeli military said Tuesday that 鈥渙perational plans for an offensive in Lebanon were approved and validated.鈥�
Earlier, Foreign Minister Israel Katz had warned of Hezbollah鈥檚 destruction in a 鈥渢otal war.鈥�
Nasrallah said his Iran-backed group had been informed that Israel could use airports and bases in Cyprus if Hezbollah struck Israeli airports.
Cyprus, a European Union member, has good relations with Israel and Lebanon, and lies close to the coast of both countries.
鈥淥pening Cypriot airports and bases to the Israeli enemy to target Lebanon would mean that the Cypriot government is part of the war, and the resistance will deal with it as part of the war,鈥� Nasrallah threatened.
Britain has also retained sovereign control over two base areas in its former colony Cyprus under the terms of the treaties that granted the island independence in 1960.
Nasrallah鈥檚 statements came a day after US envoy Amos Hochstein 鈥� who in 2022 brokered a maritime border deal between Israel and Lebanon 鈥� called for 鈥渦rgent鈥� de-escalation during a visit to Lebanon.
He also met with senior officials in Israel on his regional tour.
鈥淓verything the enemy says and that the mediators convey, including with threats of war on Lebanon... this doesn鈥檛 scare us,鈥� Nasrallah said.
On Tuesday, Hezbollah released a more than nine-minute video showing aerial footage purportedly taken by the movement over northern Israel, including what it said were sensitive military, defense and energy facilities and infrastructure in the city and port of Haifa.
Nasrallah said the footage was taken by a drone that 鈥渇lew for long hours鈥� over the Haifa port.
He also warned that his group had only used 鈥渁 part of鈥� its weapons since October.
鈥淲e have obtained new weapons,鈥� Nasrallah said, without elaborating.
鈥淲e have developed some of our weapons... and we are keeping others for the days that will come,鈥� he said.
鈥淵ears ago we talked about 100,000 fighters... today, we have greatly exceeded鈥� that number, Nasrallah added.
鈥淭he resistance has more (manpower) than it needs... even in the worst circumstances,鈥� he said.
Hezbollah on Wednesday claimed several attacks on Israeli troops and positions in northern Israel, and announced the death of four of its fighters.
The cross-border violence has killed at least 478 people in Lebanon, most of them fighters but also including 93 civilians, according to an AFP tally.
Israeli authorities say at least 15 soldiers and 11 civilians have been killed in the country鈥檚 north.