Hezbollah chief: Israeli-U.S. strike on Iran will lead to regional war

Hezbollah chief: Israeli-U.S. strike on Iran will lead to regional war
Speaking in southern Beirut neighborhood, Hassan Nasrallah says Israel is wary of Hezbollah's strength and will think twice before attacking Lebanon again.
By Jack Khoury Tags: Hezbollah IDF


Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah warned Friday that an Israeli or U.S. strike on Iran's nuclear facilities will lead to a regional war.

"I'm not threatening, but anyone with sense can see that an Israeli-U.S. strike on Iran, or military involvement in Syria, will lead to a regional war," Nasrallah said while speaking in Beirut's southern neighborhood of Dahia.
Nasrallah - AP - Feb. 16, 2011

Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah speaks via a video link during a rally in Beirut on Feb. 16, 2011.
Photo by: AP

"And I believe Khamenei when he says Iran can thwart any attack on its nuclear facilities," he continued.

He also said that Israel is wary of Hezbollah's strength and will think twice before attacking Lebanon.

Nasrallah said that the "suicide attacks initiated by members of the resistance are those which created the force of both the resistance and Hezbollah in Lebanon."

"Israel will think twice before it attacks Lebanon since it knows well the kind of power the resistance and Hezbollah have in the country," the Hezbollah leader added during his speech at an event commemorating members of the militant group.

Earlier this month, Nasrallah accused the United States of trying to exploit the Arab Spring revolts that took place in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya.

"The Americans want to polish their image in the Arab and Islamic worlds, which have voiced rejection of the criminal U.S. administration's policies," Nasrallah said in an interview with Al Manar television, which is run by the Lebanese Shiite movement.

He claimed the "West will try to stir sedition when it realizes that the upcoming regimes [in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya] will not be in its service," and cautioned the leaders in those countries to "realize that the achievements of the revolution must be preserved."

Referring to the ongoing violence in Syria and the crackdown on pro-democracy protesters, Nasrallah, a main ally of Syrian President Bashar Assad, defended the regime.

"The Syrian regime is being attacked because it does not abide by the rules of the Americans," he said.

Nasrallah said that although Assad has expressed a willingness to carry out reforms, "but what is wanted in Syria is not reforms, but to topple a regime who is against the U.S. administration.”