Nasrallah threatens war if Israel ‘takes a wrong step’

Israel is weak and we can hit all of it, Hezbollah leader claims in a speech marking Israel’s withdrawal from Lebanon in 2000.

By Batya Jerenberg, World Israel News

Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah threatened Israel Thursday with a major war in a speech marking Israel’s withdrawal from Lebanon in 2000.

Speaking on what Hezbollah dubbed the “Day of Resistance,” the terror chief addressed the IDF, saying: “You are not the ones threatening war, it is we who do so, and any such war will include all of Israel’s borders.”

Nasrallah’s Iranian-backed organization has “hundreds of thousands of fighters,” he claimed, who would participate in the fight.

A “major war,” he added, could be the result of “any wrong action in Palestine, Syria or Iran.”

Israel “is facing an ideological retreat” and has been weakened, Nasrallah further claimed, while the Palestinians have grown stronger.

“After the Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon in 2000 and the withdrawal from Gaza, the concept of ‘Greater Israel’ no longer exists,” he said. “Today, it hides behind walls of fire and is unable to impose its terms in any negotiations with the Palestinians….. One of the most important transformations that have taken place is the deterrent power of the resistance forces. The Israelis failed to strengthen their own deterrent power, and realized that they will pay the price for every crime they commit.”

The Jewish state’s major backer is also having trouble, which will directly affect Israel’s abilities as well, he noted.

“American hegemony no longer exists in the world, and the mentality in the Arab world has shifted, and this is what worries Israel,” Nasrallah maintained.

The longtime leader of Hezbollah was reacting in part to a speech IDF Intelligence head Maj.-Gen. Aharon Haliva gave Wednesday in which he described a “high potential for escalation in the region” but sent the warning that Israel is prepared and should not be trifled with.

“Unfortunately, Nasrallah is close to making a mistake that could degenerate the region into a major war. He is close to this mistake from Lebanon and Syria,” Haliva said at Reichman University’s annual Herzliya Conference.

He referred to a Hezbollah operative who had infiltrated from Lebanon in March and set off an explosive at Megiddo Junction, injuring an Israeli-Arab driver, which he noted was “not a one-time story” because Nasrallah thinks he can start up with Israel again.

“We need to be prepared for our enemies not to understand the message we are conveying. Make no mistake, we are ready to use force and will do everything possible and everything necessary to bring quiet,” Haliva said.

While the intelligence chief did not denigrate Washington’s strength as Nasrallah did, calling it the “omnipotent power” and still “the global policeman” whose policy “shapes the entire world,” he did seem to imply that Israel’s “peerless ally” was currently dealing with many difficulties, including competition with China and internal ideological battles that are far from over.

This, in addition to “entire global processes,” including the current economic crisis, has led to “all the players” understanding “that it is impossible to just lean on one pillar no matter how good it is,” he said, “and therefore agreements are signed, alliances are formed and the State of Israel needs to examine in depth its position in the region in the face of these developments.”

Haliva then struck a positive note, saying, “Even today Israel is an asset country. It has technological, military, intelligence capabilities and a strong economy, and it is a powerful country that needs to take advantage of its assets. This requires a partnership with the US and an understanding of the tapestry that is developing and where it is right for us to position ourselves.”