Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem on Friday, August 15th accused Lebanon’s government of “handing” the country to Israel by pushing for the group’s disarmament, warning it would fight to keep its weapons.
Qassem spoke in a televised address after meeting Iran’s top security chief Ali Larijani, whose country has long backed the terrorist organization.
Hezbollah emerged badly weakened from last year’s war with Israel, and under U.S. pressure the Lebanese government has ordered the army to devise a plan to disarm the group by the end of the year.
Iran, whose so-called “axis of resistance” includes Hezbollah, has also suffered a series of setbacks, most recently in the war with Israel.
“The government is implementing an American–Israeli order to end the resistance, even if it leads to civil war and internal strife,” Qassem said.
He also said the government would “bear responsibility for any internal explosion and any destruction of Lebanon”, accusing it of “leading the country to ruin.”
Hezbollah and its ally Amal would not be organising any street protests at this time, he said, while threatening to do so in future.
Before the war with Israel, Hezbollah was believed to be better armed than the Lebanese military.
It long maintained it had to keep its arsenal in order to defend Lebanon from attack, but critics accused it of using its weapons for political leverage.
