Hezbollah Secretary-General Sheikh Naim Qassem seen in June 19, 2024. He spoke in a televised speech Friday, marking Ashura, the culmination of a 10-day mourning period observed by Shiite Muslims. Photo by Wael Hamzeh/UPI
BEIRUT, June 26 (UPI) -- Hezbollah Secretary-General Sheikh Naim Qassem said on Friday that Israel must withdraw from Lebanon "humiliated" and without conditions, rejecting normalization or an end to the state of enmity with it, and describing Iran as the "path to salvation."
Qassem was speaking in a televised speech marking Ashura, the culmination of a 10-day mourning period observed by Shiite Muslims to commemorate the martyrdom of Imam Hussein, the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad, at the Battle of Karbala in 680 CE.
He said Israel has "no option" but to withdraw fully from every inch of Lebanon and that it must leave unconditionally, "humiliated and disgraced."
Israel retaliated against Hezbollah after it opened a support front for Gaza on Oct. 8, 2023, killing its top leadership, degrading its military infrastructure, and reoccupying parts of southern Lebanon.
