Hizbullah Executive Council Head: The Resistance Is 'A National Necessity For Every Lebanese,' Israel Suffered A 'Decisive Failure' In Gaza And Cannot Prevail; Biden 'The False Messiah' Bears Chief Responsibility For The Murder Of Civilians In Gaza

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On December 18, 2023, Hashim Safi Al-Din, chairman of Lebanese Hizbullah's Executive Council, delivered a speech at a memorial ceremony that was held in the city of Hermel in northeastern Lebanon in honor of two Hizbullah fighters who were killed "on the road to Jerusalem." In his speech, Safi Al-Din asserted that "the resistance – its weapons, its rockets and its might – is a national necessity for every Lebanese who wants to protect the homeland." Referring to the situation in the Gaza Strip he claimed that Israel has suffered a total failure, and it lacks the capability to prevail. He said that the Israeli army is crumbling and that "in every real battle it will be defeated." He added that the battle that follows Al-Aqsa Flood will be "a battle of the entire Islamic nation," and that it is the one that will determine the situation in the region. He described the U.S. as "the main enemy" and accused it of responsibility for the extensive killing of civilians in Gaza. Referring to U.S. President Joe Biden as "the Dajjal [false messiah,]" he asserted that he deceives his constituents and the entire world in an effort to absolve himself of blame while in fact "he is the main one responsible, the partner and the one who gives the orders."

Hashim Safi Al-Din, left (Source: Alahednews.com.lb, December 18, 2023)

The following is a summary of the main points of Safi Al-Din's speech, as presented on Hizbullah's Al-Ahed website:[1]

In his speech, Safi Al-Din claimed that "the resistance – its weapons, its rockets and its might – is a national necessity for every Lebanese who wants to protect the homeland, its independence, its resources and its future." He stated that, "the moment Israel discerns a weakness in Lebanon, it will set upon it and not allow it to live in peace and security. That is what the enemy says explicitly."

According to the Executive Council chairman, after 70 days of fighting, "Israel has suffered a large and total failure, for it is not capable of prevailing in the battle over days or weeks. And the same goes for the border with Lebanon." He contended that Israel "has begun to crumble and we are witnessing the Israeli army that is weakening and what comprises its forces are crumbling… In every real battle it will be defeated, if Allah wills it."

The memorial ceremony in the city of Hermel (Source: Alahednews.com.lb, December 18, 2023)

The battle that follows the Al-Aqsa Flood, said Safi Al-Din, will be, "A battle of the entire Islamic nation which will determine many of the points of confrontation and the equations which will determine the situation in the region, from both the military and the political perspective." He asserted that the enemies of Hizbullah "are leading a campaign that they don't know how to conclude. They are adrift and have lost their way… They have not succeeded in attaining any clear goal and nothing is left to them except to kill in a terrible way." He said that the Israeli army cannot prevail in the battle, which means – in his opinion – that "winning is not dependent only on planes and mortars but also on the territory and its people. We were and still are, to this day, the people of this territory."

Safi Al-Din asserted that the confusion is obvious regarding "the main, American enemy," because – he maintains – the U.S. could have stopped the war, had it wanted to, but it "mocks the world and the naïve Arab countries… Joe Biden 'the Dajjal' laughs at his constituents and at the entire world, for he claims that he does not condone this level of killing, while in fact he supports it, and that he does not condone the killing of civilians, while in practice he does not stop the war against them."

He also claimed that Biden was compelled to make these declarations (i.e. about his opposition to the killing of civilians) following "the important pressure and steadfastness of the mujahideen in Gaza, as well as the heavy pressure on the American administration resulting from the awakening of the world. He wants to absolve himself of blame while in reality he is the main one responsible, the partner and the one who gives the orders."

It is noteworthy that at a similar event that took place the previous week in Lebanon's Beqaa Valley, Safi Al-Din expressed comparable messages, among them that Israel has lost faith in its army, and that Hizbullah is conducting "a battle in defense of Gaza and the West Bank." He also declared that Hizbullah "will confront and expel the American project from the region."[2]