Sayyed Nasrallah Speech in First Appearance after Divine Victory on 01-11-2006
Source: Compiled by Moqawama.org, 01-11-2006
In his first appearance since the Divine Victory Rally in South Beirut, Hizbullah secretary general, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah has set Lebanon`s (so-called) majority coalition government a November deadline to agree to form a national unity government.
The Hizbullah leader says if this does not occur there will be protests demanding new elections.
Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri has called for round-table talks next week between feuding political leaders to defuse a crisis threatening the country`s stability.
Berri, a leader allied with Hizbullah, said the talks would discuss demands for a change of government and a new election law.
Hizbullah and its allies have been demanding a new government since a 34-day war between "Israel" and Lebanon ended in August.
"If the consultations, dialogue and political efforts did not lead to a national unity government and these (opposition) forces are forced to take to the streets then... the goal of the protests, strikes and sit-ins... should be calling for early elections," Nasrallah told Hizbullah`s television station.
He said Hizbullah and its allies should have at least a third of the cabinet. The group, and Berri`s Amal faction, currently have five ministers in the 24-member government.
A third of votes in the government can block the passage of decisions in any cabinet vote.
Hizbullah has been a fierce critic of Prime Minister Fouad Siniora, whom it sees as keen to disarm its guerrillas.
"Some coalition leaders want resistance disarmed"
Nasrallah said some leaders of the coalition had demanded that his group lay down its weapons at the start of the war with "Israel" and agree to the deployment of a multi-national force across Lebanon.
The war was ended by a UN resolution that ordered the deployment of a beefed-up UN peacekeeping force in south Lebanon alongside thousands of Lebanese army troops.
Next week`s talks are widely seen as the last chance to avert a showdown on the streets and threaten Lebanon`s stability.
"If the week (of meetings) ends without positive results... then the zero hour (for the protests) would come," Nasrallah said.
So-called majority coalition members which dominate Siniora`s government had dismissed the call for a national unity government, and showed reluctance to attend next week`s talks and have threatened to call counter protests if the pro-reformists take to the streets, raising fears of clashes.
Nasrallah said that any attempts by an international force to disarm the occupation resistance would transform Lebanon into another Iraq.
"This is dangerous and will lead to transforming Lebanon into another Afghanistan and another Iraq,`` Nasrallah said in taped interview on Hizbullah`s television station Al-Manar on Tuesday.
No mandate
Hizbullah has refused to lay down its arms, and neither the UN peacekeepers nor some 15,000 Lebanese troops patrolling a buffer zone in south Lebanon have the mandate or political will to take Hizbullah`s weapons by force.
Nasrallah expressed concern that deteriorating security could force Lebanon`s Western-backed government to ask UN peacekeepers to take stronger actions than their current mandate dictates.
Since the war ended on August 14, Beirut has witnessed a string of minor attacks, including a grenade fired at a downtown building that houses a dance club.
The explosion, which was near UN offices, injured six people, broke windows and damaged cars.
Many people believe the attacks had political or sectarian overtones, but no suspects have been publicly named.
Prisoners swap talks confirmed
Hizbullah`s leader has confirmed that indirect talks with "Israel" on a prisoner exchange are under way, describing them as "serious".
Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said a United Nations mediator had been meeting officials from both sides, but he provided no further details.
"I would like to assure all those interested in this file that there are serious negotiations that are continuing," Nasrallah told Hizbullah`s television station.
"The delegate appointed by the UN secretary-general is conducting this mission and is meeting a Hizbullah delegation and also on the other side
`Israelis` concerned with this file," Nasrallah said.
Hizbullah guerrillas captured the two "Israeli" soldiers, reservists Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev, in a border raid on 12 July.
The group has offered to exchange the two "Israeli" soldiers for Arab prisoners in "Israel", but "Israel" has repeatedly refused.
"I would like to assure all those interested in this file that there are serious negotiations continuing... this issue is on track. We are moving ahead," Sayyed Nasrallah told Hizbullah`s TV station.
"We have reached a stage of exchanging ideas, proposals or conditions."
He refused to speculate on how long it could take to reach a deal, saying only it depended on "the nature of the negotiations".
"Israel" has so far made no comment on the issue.
When Hizbullah captured "Israeli" soldiers in 2000, it took four years before talks succeeded and the soldiers were swapped for some 400 Palestinian and 35 Lebanese prisoners, our correspondent says.
"No problem with UNIFIL" if here to help Lebanese Army
"The assembly of UNIFIL forces does not hint to anything that should inspire fear. This is not an ensemble with a goal of disarming us, nor would they be able to do so," he said. Nasrallah said the countries that had sent forces to Lebanon had established contact with the Hizbullah before deciding to deploy their troops. "We told them that we have no problem with them coming to help the [Lebanese] army," he said.
The Hizbullah leader also said that "Israel" had been defeated in the recent war, and would have to "think a thousand times" before starting another war in Lebanon. He said the guerilla group had well prepared itself over the last six years for a war of seige with "Israel". "We had more than 33,000 missiles," he said, adding, "and what we had is still in our possession.
"U.S. plan will fail"
Hizbullah leader said that the U.S. has failed in Iraq and animosity in the Arab world against Washington should not be blamed on Islamic extremism.
Nasrallah accused the United States of being responsible for continued violence in Iraq and Afghanistan.. The 34-day conflicted ended Aug. 14 with a cease-fire.
"Afghanistan is a failure ... In Iraq, there is clear failure on the security, military and political levels ... Who shoulders responsibility? It`s the American administration and the occupation forces in control of the situation," Nasrallah said in a taped interview on Hizbullah`s television station Al-Manar.
He said America`s plans in the Middle East face "failure, frustration and a state of collapse," and predicted the U.S. would be forced to leave the region in the future - just like it left Vietnam after the war there three decades ago.
The U.S. has "no future" in the region, Nasrallah said. "They will leave the Mideast, Arab and Islamic worlds just as they left Vietnam, and I advise those who are counting on them to draw conclusion from the Vietnam experience."
This would happen "within years, not months," he added.
"`Israeli` onslaught served coalition's goals"
Sayyed Nasrallah also accused the Parliament`s so-called majority of having planned for a larger UN peacekeeping force in the South for a long time, adding that "Israel's" summer offensive helped achieve this goal. Speaking during an interview with Al-Manar television late Tuesday, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said a Lebanese government official called him in the first days of the war and told him that it was going to be a long one if the resistance did not abide by three conditions.
Nasrallah said the conditions were Hizbullah`s approval of the deployment of multinational forces under Chapter 7 of the UN Charter, the group`s disarmament, and the unconditional release of the two "Israeli" soldiers captured on July 12.
"We were threatened; he told us that the government would hold us responsible for the continuation of the war," Nasrallah said, refusing to identify the government official.
He added, however, that "Israel" and its allies could not defeat the resistance, "nor will it ever be able to."
Nasrallah said 14 Feb. Forces were seeking to transform the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) into one that would deploy across the country rather than only in the South - and would have jurisdiction under Chapter 7, which stipulates action as a means to halt any threats, to breaches of, peace.
He argued that before the July-August war, US policy failed to gain control of Lebanon. He added that the US launched the war to save "Israel" and disarm the resistance.
He also accused the "ruling majority" of instigating domestic tension to meet US agendas.
"The ruling so-called majority is now frightened because it has lost the people`s support," he said.
"I urge the Lebanese to read what the `Israelis` are saying to know that `Israel` has failed in its war on Lebanon," he added.
He added that UNIFIL would not prevent any possible `Israeli` attacks on the country and highlighted the resistance`s ability to face any such threats and help the Lebanese Army.
"The resistance is able to prevent the `Israelis` from occupying the country," he said.
In his first appearance since the Divine Victory Rally in South Beirut, Hizbullah secretary general, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah has set Lebanon`s (so-called) majority coalition government a November deadline to agree to form a national unity government.
The Hizbullah leader says if this does not occur there will be protests demanding new elections.
Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri has called for round-table talks next week between feuding political leaders to defuse a crisis threatening the country`s stability.
Berri, a leader allied with Hizbullah, said the talks would discuss demands for a change of government and a new election law.
Hizbullah and its allies have been demanding a new government since a 34-day war between "Israel" and Lebanon ended in August.
"If the consultations, dialogue and political efforts did not lead to a national unity government and these (opposition) forces are forced to take to the streets then... the goal of the protests, strikes and sit-ins... should be calling for early elections," Nasrallah told Hizbullah`s television station.
He said Hizbullah and its allies should have at least a third of the cabinet. The group, and Berri`s Amal faction, currently have five ministers in the 24-member government.
A third of votes in the government can block the passage of decisions in any cabinet vote.
Hizbullah has been a fierce critic of Prime Minister Fouad Siniora, whom it sees as keen to disarm its guerrillas.
"Some coalition leaders want resistance disarmed"
Nasrallah said some leaders of the coalition had demanded that his group lay down its weapons at the start of the war with "Israel" and agree to the deployment of a multi-national force across Lebanon.
The war was ended by a UN resolution that ordered the deployment of a beefed-up UN peacekeeping force in south Lebanon alongside thousands of Lebanese army troops.
Next week`s talks are widely seen as the last chance to avert a showdown on the streets and threaten Lebanon`s stability.
"If the week (of meetings) ends without positive results... then the zero hour (for the protests) would come," Nasrallah said.
So-called majority coalition members which dominate Siniora`s government had dismissed the call for a national unity government, and showed reluctance to attend next week`s talks and have threatened to call counter protests if the pro-reformists take to the streets, raising fears of clashes.
Nasrallah said that any attempts by an international force to disarm the occupation resistance would transform Lebanon into another Iraq.
"This is dangerous and will lead to transforming Lebanon into another Afghanistan and another Iraq,`` Nasrallah said in taped interview on Hizbullah`s television station Al-Manar on Tuesday.
No mandate
Hizbullah has refused to lay down its arms, and neither the UN peacekeepers nor some 15,000 Lebanese troops patrolling a buffer zone in south Lebanon have the mandate or political will to take Hizbullah`s weapons by force.
Nasrallah expressed concern that deteriorating security could force Lebanon`s Western-backed government to ask UN peacekeepers to take stronger actions than their current mandate dictates.
Since the war ended on August 14, Beirut has witnessed a string of minor attacks, including a grenade fired at a downtown building that houses a dance club.
The explosion, which was near UN offices, injured six people, broke windows and damaged cars.
Many people believe the attacks had political or sectarian overtones, but no suspects have been publicly named.
Prisoners swap talks confirmed
Hizbullah`s leader has confirmed that indirect talks with "Israel" on a prisoner exchange are under way, describing them as "serious".
Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said a United Nations mediator had been meeting officials from both sides, but he provided no further details.
"I would like to assure all those interested in this file that there are serious negotiations that are continuing," Nasrallah told Hizbullah`s television station.
"The delegate appointed by the UN secretary-general is conducting this mission and is meeting a Hizbullah delegation and also on the other side
`Israelis` concerned with this file," Nasrallah said.
Hizbullah guerrillas captured the two "Israeli" soldiers, reservists Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev, in a border raid on 12 July.
The group has offered to exchange the two "Israeli" soldiers for Arab prisoners in "Israel", but "Israel" has repeatedly refused.
"I would like to assure all those interested in this file that there are serious negotiations continuing... this issue is on track. We are moving ahead," Sayyed Nasrallah told Hizbullah`s TV station.
"We have reached a stage of exchanging ideas, proposals or conditions."
He refused to speculate on how long it could take to reach a deal, saying only it depended on "the nature of the negotiations".
"Israel" has so far made no comment on the issue.
When Hizbullah captured "Israeli" soldiers in 2000, it took four years before talks succeeded and the soldiers were swapped for some 400 Palestinian and 35 Lebanese prisoners, our correspondent says.
"No problem with UNIFIL" if here to help Lebanese Army
"The assembly of UNIFIL forces does not hint to anything that should inspire fear. This is not an ensemble with a goal of disarming us, nor would they be able to do so," he said. Nasrallah said the countries that had sent forces to Lebanon had established contact with the Hizbullah before deciding to deploy their troops. "We told them that we have no problem with them coming to help the [Lebanese] army," he said.
The Hizbullah leader also said that "Israel" had been defeated in the recent war, and would have to "think a thousand times" before starting another war in Lebanon. He said the guerilla group had well prepared itself over the last six years for a war of seige with "Israel". "We had more than 33,000 missiles," he said, adding, "and what we had is still in our possession.
"U.S. plan will fail"
Hizbullah leader said that the U.S. has failed in Iraq and animosity in the Arab world against Washington should not be blamed on Islamic extremism.
Nasrallah accused the United States of being responsible for continued violence in Iraq and Afghanistan.. The 34-day conflicted ended Aug. 14 with a cease-fire.
"Afghanistan is a failure ... In Iraq, there is clear failure on the security, military and political levels ... Who shoulders responsibility? It`s the American administration and the occupation forces in control of the situation," Nasrallah said in a taped interview on Hizbullah`s television station Al-Manar.
He said America`s plans in the Middle East face "failure, frustration and a state of collapse," and predicted the U.S. would be forced to leave the region in the future - just like it left Vietnam after the war there three decades ago.
The U.S. has "no future" in the region, Nasrallah said. "They will leave the Mideast, Arab and Islamic worlds just as they left Vietnam, and I advise those who are counting on them to draw conclusion from the Vietnam experience."
This would happen "within years, not months," he added.
"`Israeli` onslaught served coalition's goals"
Sayyed Nasrallah also accused the Parliament`s so-called majority of having planned for a larger UN peacekeeping force in the South for a long time, adding that "Israel's" summer offensive helped achieve this goal. Speaking during an interview with Al-Manar television late Tuesday, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said a Lebanese government official called him in the first days of the war and told him that it was going to be a long one if the resistance did not abide by three conditions.
Nasrallah said the conditions were Hizbullah`s approval of the deployment of multinational forces under Chapter 7 of the UN Charter, the group`s disarmament, and the unconditional release of the two "Israeli" soldiers captured on July 12.
"We were threatened; he told us that the government would hold us responsible for the continuation of the war," Nasrallah said, refusing to identify the government official.
He added, however, that "Israel" and its allies could not defeat the resistance, "nor will it ever be able to."
Nasrallah said 14 Feb. Forces were seeking to transform the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) into one that would deploy across the country rather than only in the South - and would have jurisdiction under Chapter 7, which stipulates action as a means to halt any threats, to breaches of, peace.
He argued that before the July-August war, US policy failed to gain control of Lebanon. He added that the US launched the war to save "Israel" and disarm the resistance.
He also accused the "ruling majority" of instigating domestic tension to meet US agendas.
"The ruling so-called majority is now frightened because it has lost the people`s support," he said.
"I urge the Lebanese to read what the `Israelis` are saying to know that `Israel` has failed in its war on Lebanon," he added.
He added that UNIFIL would not prevent any possible `Israeli` attacks on the country and highlighted the resistance`s ability to face any such threats and help the Lebanese Army.
"The resistance is able to prevent the `Israelis` from occupying the country," he said.
