Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah delivered a televised speech on Resistance and Liberation Day on Wednesday that started on at 20:30 Beirut Local Time, Al-Manar TV website reported.
According to Al-Manar, on May 25, 2000, the Israeli occupation army completed its withdrawal from most of the Lebanese territories, except Shebaa Farms and KfarShuba Hills, due to the heavy losses inflicted upon it by the Resistance strikes.
At the start of his speech, Hezbollah chief said "The day of victory over ‘Israel’ and liberation from its hegemony is one of Allah’s days."
Nasrallah congratulated all people on this joyful day, saying "This is what people felt when returning to their liberated villages."
He saluted all who sacrificed, factions and sects, for the sake of the resistance, and thanked all who provided help and assistance to the Lebanese resistance during past years.
Hezbollah secretary general further thanked Syria, Iran, and whoever stood beside the resistance during that critical time even if it was only a word of support.
He also extended gratitude to the Lebanese army especially in the late 1990s.
Nasrallah also highlighted that "The new generation shall acknowledge the humiliation and suffering the Lebanese endured at checkpoints and in prisons."
The Lebanese shall realize the true face of the Zionist regime which tries to hide, he said, adding that "He who resisted the occupation shall be recognized, and who conspired against his homeland shall be exposed to avoid outbidding."
" 2000 Victory is the greatest achievement in the modern history, a matter of pride on the Arabic, Islamic, and national level," the Hezbollah chief asserted, adding that "the resistance didn’t monopolize operations or achievements, it thanked everyone."
"The Arabs abandoned the resistance at that time. For that reason, it is necessary to thank Syria for standing by the resistance ... We thank the Islamic Republic of Iran for its assistance and for sparing no efforts to help us. Everyone knows about their help, especially the role played by the martyr Haj Qasem Soleimani."
"We did not fight for the sake of power in Lebanon, we fought to defend our country," he went on to say.
"Our moral, religious, and national duty obliged us to mount the resistance against occupation."
Nasrallah went on to point to the recent parliamentary elections and said "We entered parliament to be the resistance voice, in 2005 we were obliged to join the government to protect the resistance’s back."
"The resistance is protecting the homeland and this does not need a permission from anyone," he pointed out, adding that "This resistance has obliged ‘Israel’ to send reassurance messages to Lebanon."
"It is true that any attempt to disarm Hezbollah by force would lead to civil war," he warned, adding that "This resistance is stronger than you can imagine, it’s stronger than any time before."
"The country is falling into an abyss, there might not remain a state to hand it over our arms," Nasrallah said, adding that, "We told them to leave the resistance alone and focus on the economic crisis the Lebanese are facing, but to no avail."
"Lebanon can be a rich state through oil and gas, we want a rich Lebanon as much as we want it powerful."
"If you want to discuss the defense strategy, let us discuss how to protect and extract our offshore oil and gas first," he went on to say.
Nasrallah warned that within days, things might happen in the region and might lead to an explosion.
He further warned hat "Any harm against Al-Aqsa mosque will lead to dire consequences as such issue provokes Islamic sentiments."
MNA