BEIRUT, Lebanon, March 4 (UPI) -- Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem said Wednesday that his Iran‑backed group has resumed fighting to compel Israel to halt its aggression and withdraw from occupied Lebanese territories, stressing that the move was unrelated to the U.S.‑led war on Iran and vowing to resist regardless of the sacrifices.
"The fighting is not related to any other battle," Qassem said in a speech broadcast on Hezbollah's al Manar TV. "The resistance's main goal is to stop the Israeli-American aggression and force its withdrawal from the Lebanese territories."
He said Israel sought "a battle pushed to the extreme" and pledged to resist "regardless of the sacrifices and despite the disparity in resources."
It was his first speech since Hezbollah fired missiles and drones into northern Israel early Monday, triggering retaliatory Israeli strikes on Beirut's southern suburbs and other areas that have so far killed 72 people, injured 437 and caused mass displacement.
The group, which was severely weakened during the war that erupted after it opened a support front for Gaza on Oct. 8, 2023, has kept a low profile and refrained from retaliating to Israel's almost daily attacks since the Nov. 27 cease-fire agreement.
