Israel and Hezbollah continue to trade fire across the border

by Dave DeCamp August 6, 2024 at 3:34 pm ET 

CategoriesNewsTagsHezbollah, Israel

Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah vowed in a televised speech on Tuesday that the Lebanese group would have a “strong” response to the Israeli killing of a high-level Hezbollah commander.

Nasrallah delivered the speech during a ceremony that marked one week after the Hezbollah commander, Fuah Shukr, was killed by an Israeli airstrike in the Beirut neighborhood of Dahieh, along with two women and two children.

Moments before Nasrallah began his speech, Israeli jets broke the sound barrier over Beirut, letting out sonic booms over the city, which has a population of about 2.4 million. Nasrallah denounced the move as a “petty” provocation.

Supporters listen to a speech of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah via a video, during a commemorative ceremony marking the first week since the killing of Hezbollah’s top commander Fuad Shukr, in the southern suburbs of Beirut, Lebanon August 6, 2024. REUTERS/Alkis Konstantinidis

“We have not sought escalations until now, we have been fighting in support of Gaza but keeping in mind the Lebanese national interest,” Nasrallah said. “But an assassination of a top leader in the Dahieh must be treated differently … Our response is coming, God willing, from us and the axis of resistance — and it will be strong.”

The “axis of resistance” refers to Hezbollah and Iran’s allies in the region, including Shia militias based in Iraq and the Houthis, officially known as Ansar Allah, who govern the most populous areas of Yemen.

Iran is preparing to respond to the Israeli killing of Hamas’s political chief, Ismail Haniyeh, in Tehran. The US and Israel are expecting Iran’s reprisal to be a major attack that will be coordinated with Hezbollah and its other allies.

The US has vowed to defend Israel from any attack, which Nasrallah mentioned in his speech. “When Iran and Hezbollah spoke of retaliating against Israel for its atrocities, the US affirmed its commitment to defend the Zionist entity,” Nasrallah said, “The occupation relies on the United States and Western countries for protection as it is unable to defend itself.”

Meanwhile, tit-for-tat strikes between Israel and Hezbollah across the border continued on Tuesday. Israeli airstrikes targeted the village of Maifadoun in southern Lebanon, killing five people, including four Hezbollah fighters.

Later in the day, Hezbollah launched drones into northern Israel, and at least 19 people were wounded, including six soldiers. The Israeli military said that most of the casualties were caused by an Israeli interceptor rocket that missed and hit the ground.

https://news.antiwar.com/2024/08/06/nasrallah-vows-strong-response-to-israeli-killing-of-hezbollah-commander-is-coming/