Terrorist Designations Do Not Affect Hezbollah: Hassan Nasrallah

Hezbollah Secretary-General congratulated the Lebanese people on the occasion of Independence Day, saying the Lebanese people are all responsible for maintaining their independence, and if they consider their independence to be nominal, “they must turn it into a real, complete independence.”

“A large part of the Lebanese people resisted and upheld the Resistance in all its forms up until the great victory in 1985, when the Israeli occupation forces left the capital, Mount Lebanon, Saida, and Rachaya, followed by the greater victory in 2000, when the Israeli occupation fled south Lebanon,” Hassan Nasrallah underscored.

Hassan Nasrallah noted that Lebanon would continue to fight for its independence and sovereignty amid the continuous Israeli threats. “We have been victorious throughout several stages (of our fight), and we are certain that if we continue our path with determination and steadfastness, we will achieve more victories,” he added.

The Secretary-General indicated that the blatant, habitual US interferences in Lebanon’s judiciary, politics, security, and parliamentary elections, without doubt, undermine the country’s sovereignty.

The leader touched on the designation of Hezbollah as a “terrorist organization”, noting that a contributing factor could have been the latest regional developments or the parliamentary elections.

Such designations “will not affect the determination of the Resistance, nor the support for it,” Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah underscored.

In another context, he touched upon the ongoing normalization process between various Arab states and the Israeli occupation, the latest of which was the security agreement between Morocco and “Israel”, describing it [the normalization process] as “shameful and insolent.”

Hassan Nasrallah called for reconsidering the recent decision of lifting subsidies on certain types of medicine, warning that the decision put the lives of thousands of Lebanese people at risk.

The Secretary-General added that such decisions are unacceptable, asserting that claims of insufficient money in the state to maintain the subsidies are in no way justifiable.

In this context, Hassan Nasrallah suggested taking new steps to maintain the subsidy, including dissolving ministries and funds and using their budgets for subsidizing medicine, which is an ultimate priority.

He also warned against the increase in the number of COVID-19 infections and deaths in Lebanon, declaring that since the onset of the pandemic, Hezbollah implemented a health plan, “and it was successful.”

Considering the success of the plan, Hassan Nasrallah announced that Hezbollah is fully re-activating it, offering the Lebanese Minister of Health “assistance in any field whatsoever.”

Hezbollah’s leader said the recent judicial decisions on the Beirut Port case “confirm the discretion we have been talking about all along.” He addressed the audience asking, “Is there today a Lebanese judge who would dare dismiss Judge al-Bitar or accept the lawsuits filed against him?”

Nasrallah stressed that “all the data show that the judges involved in the Beirut Port file are highly suspicious,” reiterating that “the current judicial process in the Beirut Port case is discretionary and thus, will not reveal the truth.”

With regard to the investigation into the Tayouneh ambush, Hassan Nasrallah said the investigation “was going on just fine, but the military judiciary was subjected to political pressure,” noting that “most of the individuals responsible for the Tayouneh ambush are in Maarab where they are protected to avoid their arrest.”

He considered that “the political and religious pressures on the judiciary is demeaning to the martyrs, their families, and the parties they belong to.” He also warned that dereliction “may push the families to take revenge,” thus “driving the country into sedition.”

“Before the queues of humiliation, the growth of the black market, and the [fuel] shortage, we announced that if the situation remained as it is, we will resort to Iran to buy gasoline and diesel with secured facilitations to tackle the situation,” Sayyed Hassan noted.

The Secretary-General assured that Hezbollah does not want to replace Lebanese oil companies, but rather to “alleviate the crisis.” He also underscored that US pressures on the Lebanese government are what pushed Hezbollah to bring in diesel through Syria.

In this context, he announced, “The first phase of our project started in September and ended November, and the second phase will start in just a few days.”

Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah indicated that Hezbollah has indeed delivered diesel to various municipalities, governmental institutions, hospitals, orphanages, nursing homes, and other institutions despite all the hardships.

He also disclosed the value of Hezbollah’s donations, saying the Lebanese party delivered some $2.6 million in aid and $7.75 million in diesel in the first phase alone.

Hassan Nasrallah summed up Hezbollah’s contributions throughout the last stage, saying, “Over two months, we delivered diesel to 80 nursing homes and orphanages, 320 municipalities, 22 public hospitals, and 71 fire brigades in the Lebanese Civil Defense.”