Hezbollah chief vows 'suitable and proportionate' response to any Israeli air strike

Following a flare-up this week, the head of Lebanon’s Hezbollah movement, Hassan Nasrallah, on August 7 vowed a “suitable and proportionate” response to any Israeli airstrikes on Lebanon. Earlier this week, Israel had carried out its first air raids on Lebanese soil in years, after which Hezbollah fired rockets back at the Jewish state the following day. On Saturday, in a televised speech ahead of the anniversary of the end of the last war with Israel, Nasrallah said that Hezbollah’s response was linked to the Israeli strikes that occurred in south Lebanon for the first time in 15years. 

“We wanted to tell the enemy... that any air strike by the Israeli air force on Lebanon will inevitably draw a response, though in a suitable and proportionate way, because we want to serve the purpose of protecting our country,” Nasrallah added.

Further, he went on to describe the airstrikes as a “very dangerous development” and also said that Hezbollah did not want war. While echoing some comments by the Jewish state, Nasrallah said that Hezbollah is not looking for war and does not want to head towards a war. However, he added that the group is “ready for it” if necessary. 

UN, US denounce attacks 

Meanwhile, Hezbollah's volley of rockets at Israeli positions prompted retaliatory shelling from Israel, prompting UN peacekeepers to warn of a “very dangerous situation”. The UN which maintains a monitoring force along the border called on all sides to enforce an immediate cease-fire, calling on both sides to “maintain calm”. Israel has already said that it did “not wish to escalate to a full war”. 

The US, on the other hand, has denounced Hezbollah's recent rocket strikes on Israel and urged Lebanon's government to prevent Hezbollah from firing rockets into Israel. It is worth noting that Israel launched aerial attacks on Lebanon after seven years as a retaliatory shelling against the alleged rocket attack on August 4. Fighter jets struck the launch sites and infrastructure used for terrorism in Lebanon, the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) said. Israeli Aircraft carried out routine airstrikes on Palestinian militant targets in Gaza or Iranian targets in Syria, but this was the first time since 2014 that the Israeli Air Force had bombarded Lebanese territory, the IDF added.

(Image: AP)