In a defiant speech to thousands in Beirut, Naim Qassem, the deputy leader of Hezbollah, declared that the militant group would escalate its rocket attacks into northern Israel until a ceasefire is established in Gaza. Addressing the crowd, Qassem referred to the situation as an “open-ended battle of reckoning” and condemned Israeli airstrikes for targeting not just militants but also civilians, including children and emergency responders. “Such actions cannot be justified,” he stated.
His remarks echoed those of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who, in a video address, asserted that Israel had dealt Hezbollah a series of unexpected strikes. “If Hezbollah didn’t get the message, I promise you, it will get the message,” Netanyahu warned, pledging to do everything necessary to ensure security in northern Israel.
Hezbollah, a powerful Iranian ally, opened a new front in the ongoing conflict following the October Hamas attack on Israel, which resulted in over 1,000 deaths and the hostage-taking of 250 individuals. The group has made it clear that its rocket fire into Israel will continue until a ceasefire is reached.
Recent Israeli airstrikes targeted Hezbollah strongholds in Beirut, killing Ibrahim Aqil, a senior military commander associated with the group’s elite Radwan Force. Aqil, long considered a significant threat and on the US most-wanted list, was mourned by loyalists who viewed him as a hero. As Hezbollah fighters carried his casket, crowds chanted for vengeance at the “Martyrs’ graveyard.”
However, the strikes also resulted in civilian casualties, with reports indicating the deaths of mothers, children, and entire families in residential buildings hit during the attack. Israeli forces claimed the strikes aimed at Aqil and his elite forces, but the tragic loss of innocent lives has heightened tensions.
The overall death toll from the airstrikes has surpassed 40, and the situation has left many in Lebanon grieving and fearful. Amid escalating violence, including the firing of long-range rockets into Israeli territory, global leaders have called for restraint. Meanwhile, Lebanese officials not aligned with Hezbollah condemned Israel’s actions as “war crimes.”
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned of the risk of Lebanon becoming “another Gaza” amidst the rising violence. As tensions remain high, many Lebanese citizens, like 18-year-old university student Hussein, expressed a sense of inevitability about the conflict: “We are in a war… it is an open war.”
