Hassan Nasrallah's speech jus before the Lebanon war

[Fabregas]

Translation of Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah's (HA) speech before two days:

 

"In this first address that I give in these days following Operation

True Promise, I would like to say a few words -- a word to the Lebanese

people, a word to the resistance fighters, a word to the Zionists, and a

word to the Arab rulers. I will not offer words to the international

community because I have never for one day believed that there is any

such thing as an international community, just as many in our nation feel."

 

The address of the General Secretary of Hizballah, His Excellency Sayyid

Hasan Nasrallah, to the Nation, the Lebanese people, the resistance

fighters, the Zionists, and the Arab leaders.

 

Peace be upon you and the mercy of God and His blessings!

 

To begin with, in this first address that I make to you since Operation

True Promise [in which Hizballah captured two Zionist soldiers] and the

events that followed it, I would like, to begin with, to offer my

appreciation and condolences to the families of the martyrs, those who

gave the dearest of their loved ones during these hard and difficult

days, and for all they have given in the noblest confrontation and

battle that the modern age has known or rather that all history has known.

 

I want to salute the wounded, and beseech God — be He glorified and

exalted — to sustain them, heal them and bring them health. I also wish

to salute our steadfast people in all the cities, towns and villages who

are standing firm and immoveable, rooted in their land as they are

rooted in their faith. I also salute my brothers the Mujahideen, the

steadfast resistance fighters, enduring hardship at their posts and in

all our ranks, ever ready for sacrifice in the path of what they

believe. They always have and always will regard their own safety

lightly and hold their heads high with pride.

 

In this first address that I give in these days following Operation True

Promise, I would like to say a few words — a word to the Lebanese

people, a word to the resistance fighters, a word to the Zionists, and a

word to the Arab rulers. I will not offer words to the international

community because I have never for one day believed that there is any

such thing as an international community, just as many in our nation feel.

 

First, I say to the Lebanese people: dear people — who embraced the

resistance, by whom the resistance was victorious, and for whom the

resistance won its victory on 25 May 2000 — this people who were the

makers of the first victory in the history of the Arab struggle with the

Israeli enemy, despite the basic inequality in forces, and in spite of

the fact that the majority of our Arab brothers and the majority of our

Muslim brothers abandoned us and despite the silence of the whole world,

this Lebanese people made the miracle of the victory that stunned the

world and humiliated the Zionists. Those Zionists look upon this people

in a special, unique way because they accomplished in the history of the

struggle with them a special and unique accomplishment.

 

The battle today is no longer a battle over prisoners or the exchange of

prisoners. It might be said that the Zionist enemy is responding any

time there is any operation where men are captured anywhere in any part

of the world, by any army or any state that has borders and regulations.

What is taking place today is not a response to a capture of their

soldiers; it is a squaring of accounts with the people, resistance,

state, army, political forces, regions, villages, and families that

inflicted that historic defeat on that aggressive usurper entity that

has never accepted its defeat.

 

Today, therefore, this is a total war that Zionism is waging to clear

its whole account with Lebanon, the Lebanese people, the Lebanese state,

the Lebanese army, and the Lebanese resistance, in revenge and reprisal

for the victory they won on 25 May 2000.

 

Dear steadfast, mujahid, and noble people, I know that the overwhelming

majority of this people, in their minds, hearts, wills, culture,

thoughts, love, passion, and sacrifice are a people of nobility,

dignity, honor, distinction, and pride, not a people of servility,

subservience, submissiveness, and surrender. I say to you that in this

battle we are faced with two choices — not we, as in Hizballah, or as in

the resistance, the Hizballah resistance — but Lebanon as a state, a

people, an army, a resistance, and a political power — we are faced with

two choices: either to submit today to the conditions that the Zionist

enemy wants to dictate to us all, using the pressure, support, and

backing it has from America, from around the world, and, I’m sorry to

say, from Arabs.

 

Either we submit completely to its conditions, which means taking

Lebanon into an Israeli age under Israeli domination — in total

frankness this is the extent of the matter — or we stand steadfast. That

is the other choice: that we persevere, that we persevere and confront.

I, relying on God the Exalted, and on my faith in Him and the mujahideen

and in you, knowing this people and this enemy, just as I always used to

promise you victory, now I promise you victory once again.

 

During the Grapes of Wrath in 1996, or Operation Settling of Accounts in

1993, in the beginning they had the upper hand and our situation was

much worse. But today, the situation is different. Believe me, and I

mean this, the situation now is different. All that we need is to

persevere, stand steadfast, and confront them united, and I know and I

will bet that the majority of our people are a people of steadfastness,

a mujahid [struggling] people who can sacrifice, who have no need for

pep talks. What I’m saying now is only by way of completing the idea,

and affirming the choice, and clarifying what this means.

 

Now, as for my words for the resistance fighters, for my dear and

beloved brothers: upon them rest the hopes of every Lebanese, every

Palestinian, every Arab, every Muslim, every free and decent person in

this world, every oppressed, tortured victim of injustice, every lover

of steadfastness, courage, dignity, values, and nobility — the

characteristics they embody by their presence on the field of battle and

in their fight with this enemy, the fight of valiant heroes. I say to

them: today, after God the Highest, you are the hope of our Nation. You

are the symbol of our nobility. Our honor is in your hands.

 

This honor is yours and by means of you, our honor is preserved. After

God the Exalted, it was you who were responsible for the victory of

2000. Today it is you, before all others, who are responsible for

preserving the victory, for achieving liberation, standing steadfast,

and with honor. This places demands on you that you, in practice, have

proved until now and during these days that you are entirely worthy of,

as you are worthy of our esteem. Those who put their trust in you, after

God, their charge is great, the reward will be grand, and the mighty

victory — a clear triumph — is near.

 

To the Zionists, to the people of the Zionist entity at this hour I say

to them: you will soon discover how foolish and ****** are your new

rulers, your new leaders. They do not know how to assess reality. They

have no experience in this area. You Zionists say in opinion polls that

you believe me more than you believe your officials. So now I call on

you to listen well and believe me. Today we have persevered despite the

attack that took place last night in the southern suburbs. However the

attacks multiply in every village, neighborhood, street, and home in

Lebanon, there is no difference between the south Beirut suburbs, the

City of Beirut, or any home in south Lebanon, in the Beqaa, or the

north, or Mount Lebanon, or any corner of Lebanon.

 

The equation has now changed. I will not say today that if you strike

Beirut, we will strike Haifa. I will not tell you that if you hit the

south Beirut suburbs, we will hit Haifa. You wanted to get rid of that

equation, so now we and you have got rid of it in actuality. You wanted

open warfare, and we are going into open warfare. We are ready for it, a

war on every level. To Haifa, and, believe me, to beyond Haifa, and to

beyond beyond Haifa. Not only we will be paying a price. Not only our

houses will be destroyed. Not only our children will be killed. Not only

our people will be displaced. Those days are past. That was how it was

before 1982, and before the year 2000.

 

Those times have come to an end. I promise you those times have passed.

Therefore you must also bear the responsibility for what your government

has done, for what that government has undertaken. From now on, you

wanted open warfare, so it will be open warfare. You wanted it. Your

government wanted to change the rules of the game, so let the rules then

be changed. You don’t know today whom you’re fighting. You are fighting

the children of Muhammad, of Ali, of al-Hasan, of al-Husayn, of the

Prophet’s family, the Prophet’s Companions.

 

You are fighting a people who have faith such as no one else on the face

of the earth possesses. And you have chosen open warfare with a people

who take pride in their history, their civilization, and their culture,

and who also possess material power, ability, expertise, knowledge,

calm, imagination, determination, steadfastness, and courage. In the

coming days it will be between us and you, God willing.

 

As to the Arab rulers, I don’t want to ask you about your history. I

just want to say a few words. We are adventurers. We in Hizballah are

adventurers, yes. But we have been adventurers since 1982. And we have

brought to our country only victory, freedom, liberation, dignity,

honor, and pride. This is our history. This is our experience. This is

our adventure.

 

In the year 1982 you said and the world said that we were crazy. But we

proved that we were the rational ones, so who then was crazy? This is

something else and I don’t want to get into an argument with anyone. So

I tell them simply: go bet on your reason and we will bet on our

adventure, with God as our Supporter and Benefactor. We have never for

one day counted on you. We have trusted in God, our people, our hearts,

our hands, and our children. Today we do the same, and God willing,

victory will follow.

 

The surprises that I promised you will begin starting now. Now, out at

sea off the coast of Beirut an Israeli military vessel that attacked our

infrastructure, that struck the homes of our people, our civilians; you

can see it burning. It will sink and with it dozens of Zionist Israeli

troops. This is the beginning. There will be a lot more said before the end.

 

Peace be upon you, and the mercy of God!