Hezbollah’s Naim Qassem warns Israel of increasing losses if war prolongs, renews call for presidential elections

Sheikh Naim Qassem, the Deputy Secretary-General of Hezbollah, confirmed that Israel and Palestinians face two equations each.

He considered: "Either Israel halts the war now, which would mitigate its losses, or it remains in a state of attrition, which would expand its problems, losses, and internal complexities, as it cannot win the war no matter how long it lasts, and all indicators suggest this."

He pointed out during a memorial ceremony that "Palestinians also face two equations: either the war stops, which they are demanding but the other side is not responding, in which case they will stop at a position for a better future, or the war continues, and they will remain steadfast."

"Anyone who bets that the Palestinians will tire or surrender is mistaken; anyone who bets that time will lead to Palestinian losses and achieve Israeli goals is mistaken. Therefore, prolonging the war means more Palestinian attrition and sacrifices and Israeli losses, but in the end, it will be a Palestinian victory and an Israeli loss, with consequences starting after the war ends," he affirmed. 

Sheikh Naim Qassem considered Lebanon to be a "support front," stating: "We believe that all the goals we set for the support front have been and are being achieved." 

Meanwhile, Qassem addressed the Israeli side by saying: "War with Hezbollah does not return the displaced; it increases their numbers. If we face a war, we will respond with an even harsher one, and we will not abandon the field."

He further noted: "The Israeli side knows that our readiness is so high that we do not fear threats and are prepared for confrontation. Anyone who has been able to impose a deterrent pace on Israel for 11 months, forcing it to withdraw from villages and settlements with all the losses it has incurred [...] is capable of continuing with this pace and even more. Israel knows that we are field experts."

He reaffirmed that Hezbollah decided to respond to the attack that targeted the southern suburbs of Beirut and that killed Fouad Shokor "exactly as we wanted, with 320 rockets in addition to drones hitting their targets."

Commenting on the outcome of the response, Sheikh Naim Qassem said: "We executed the operation [...] as we planned, achieving the desired goals. Israel should know that they cannot decide to return the northern residents without ending the war in Gaza."

Regarding Lebanon's presidential elections, Qassem stated that Speaker of the Parliament Nabih Berri has renewed his proposal to exit the current presidential vacuum, urging the parties to agree to his proposal.

"If they believe that the presidency is dependent on external developments, they are mistaken. The evidence is that we faced the same crisis six months before these developments. We are prepared to proceed with the presidential election process according to the path outlined by Speaker Berri, and we welcome their cooperation in this effort."