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'Hezbollah not Beirut government's rival'
Hezbollah seeks to support the Lebanese government not to compete with it, says the movement's Deputy Secretary General Sheikh Naim Qassem. One's master is not one's rival. Resistance is an independence-seeking standpoint that nullified all custodianship, emancipated the Lebanese soil and defended the country and is not a mere military force Sheikh Qassem said, a Press TV correspondent reported from Beirut. Hezbollah's deputy leader dismissed any intention of gaining power through use of military force inside Lebanon and said it had never lobbied in favor of or against certain parties during the election time. "The reason we have resorted to armed resistance is for the government to be strong," he said, highlighting the need for a powerful administration and that the Islamic party gave its full support to such a government. Qassem referred to the reconciliation between the Lebanese parties and said the recent compromise is to settle political differences and prevent the disputes from turning into street clashes. Meanwhile, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri has warned Israel is in the process of obtaining sophisticated weapons while Lebanon is prevented from acquiring night visual equipment for its army. He said Lebanon would succeed in adopting a defense strategy in cooperation between the people, the army and the country's resistance forces. Despite opposition from the majority bloc in the Lebanese parliament which demands the government should take control of all weapons, Hezbollah refuses to disarm, arguing that it needs its weapons to defend the country's sovereignty against Israel. In July 2006, the Israeli regime launched a 33-day offensive against Lebanon, imposing an aerial and naval blockade on the country and razing villages in the south. The Lebanese army did not intervene during the conflict in which the lives of more than 1,100 Lebanese civilians were lost. However, it deployed forces to southern parts of the country on August 17, three days after the war came to an end, with the Israeli blockade lifted no sooner than September 8. Posted by: Fred 2008-09-27 |
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