Hezbollah chief pledges to coordinate with Lebanese army to implement truce
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Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem delivering an address from an unknown location on Nov 29 in this still image from video.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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BEIRUT - The head of Hezbollah, Naim Qassem, on Nov 29 pledged to coordinate closely with the Lebanese army to implement a ceasefire deal with Israel, which he said his group had agreed to “with heads held high”, and vowed to help build the country’s defence capacities.
It was his first address since a ceasefire came into effect on Nov 27
Qassem said Hezbollah had “approved the deal, with the resistance strong in the battlefield, and our heads held high with our right to defend (ourselves)”.
The ceasefire stipulates that Hezbollah will withdraw from areas south of the Litani River, which runs some 30km north of the border with Israel, and that the Lebanese army will deploy troops there as Israeli ground troops withdraw.
“There will be high-level coordination between the resistance (Hezbollah) and the Lebanese army to implement the commitments of the deal,” Qassem said.
“We will work to... strengthen Lebanon’s defensive capacities,” he said in a televised speech.
“The resistance will be ready to prevent the enemy from taking advantage of Lebanon’s weakness along with our partners... first and foremost the army.”
The Lebanese army has already sent additional troops to the south, but is preparing a detailed deployment plan to share with Lebanon’s Cabinet, security sources and officials have said.
That effort has been complicated by the continuing presence of Israeli troops in Lebanese territory. The deal grants them a full 60 days to complete their withdrawal.
The Israeli military has issued restrictions on people returning to villages along Lebanon’s border with Israel and has fired at people in those villages in recent days, calling those movements a violation of the truce.
Both the Lebanese army and Hezbollah have accused Israel of breaching the ceasefire in those instances, and by launching an air strike above the Litani River on Nov 28.
Qassem said the group had scored a “divine victory” against Israel even greater than that declared after the two foes last fought in 2006.
“To those that were betting that Hezbollah would be weakened, we are sorry, their bets have failed,” he said. REUTERS, AFP
