Local Editor

In His Name

Full speech delivered by Hizbullah Secretary General, His Eminence Sayyed Nasrallah, on the first week commemoration ceremony held in honor of Martyr Leader Ali Ahmad Fayyad [Alaa of Bosnia] in Ansar Village, on Sunday March 6, 2016.

I take refuge in Allah from the stoned devil. In the Name of Allah, The Compassionate, The Most Merciful. Peace be on the Seal of prophets, our Master and Prophet, Abi Al Qassem Mohammad, and on his chaste and pure Household, and on his chosen companions, and on all messengers and prophets.

Scholars, brothers, and sisters! Peace be upon you and Allah's mercy and blessings.

Allah Almighty says in the Holy Quran: {Allah hath purchased of the believers their persons and their goods; for theirs [in return] is the Garden of Paradise; they fight in His cause, and slay and are slain: a promise binding on Him in truth, through the Law, the Gospel, and the Quran: and who is more faithful to his covenant than Allah? Then rejoice in the bargain which ye have concluded: that is the supreme achievement} True is what Allah Almighty says.

First, I thank you for your blessed, kind, and massive attendance, and I address the family of Martyr Leader Hajj Ali Ahmad Fayyad [Hajj Alaa] to felicitate them on the martyrdom of this great, dear, resisting leader, as well as to condole them on his departure while still at the peak of giving.

I also address the families of the honorable martyrs who were martyred in the latest operations staged in recent days in the same front along with Martyr Hajj Alaa, as well as in the other fronts. I felicitate these noble families on the martyrdom of their dear sons and console them for missing these precious ones.

Here, I must likewise mention the brethren Syrian martyrs, whether from the army, or the popular committees, or the popular troops who were martyred while offering their souls and fighting next to our brethren to restore the chaste bodies of Martyr Hajj Alaa and his brethren martyrs. I laud the high spirits of the martyr's son - Hadi - because his is the twin soul of his father, and this is what is expected from Martyr Leader Hajj Alaa, who had always raised generations in the resistance and men in the resistance. God willing you - Hadi - along with your brothers will carry on guarding the will as your father had guarded it until the last drop of his blood and the last of his chaste breaths.

First, I would like to proceed in tackling the stages Hajj Alaa passed through in the resistance:

1- The Resistance in Southern Lebanon

2- The Resistance in Bosnia

3- The Resistance in Iraq

4- The Resistance in Syria where he sealed his life as a martyr

These are the stages through which our Martyr Leader passed. In every stage, I will comment or clarify some important ideas that are linked to today's developments and the ongoing events, and finally, I will wrap up my talk God willing, by tackling recent developments. especially the decisions of labeling Hizbullah as a terrorist group and the subsequent official and popular reactions as consequences of the situation that developed here in the past few weeks.

As for the stages in resistance, in his youth and early life, Hajj Alaa got enrolled in the ranks of the Islamic Resistance in Lebanon as a fighter. In fact, from the very beginning, he was a fighter in the battlefield, he spent his life a fighter in the battlefield, and he sealed his life a leader in the battlefield, as a martyr in the battlefield.

He partook in all kinds and forms of resistance operations that may cross one's mind: reconnaissance, ambush-erecting, direct confrontation, bursting into positions, preparing for self-martyrdom operations in more than one front in the South... Even before 2000, he participated with the brethren in attempts to capture "Israeli" soldiers, because we wished at that time to set free our captives in "Israeli" prisons before the liberation, or at the verge of liberation in the year 2000.

Shortly afterward, Alaa became one of the elite figures and fighters in the resistance, and later he became one of its outstanding leaders who were always active and ready to offer sacrifices.

This leader with his jihad and sacrifices, and the jihad and sacrifices of his brethren and all the martyrs and resistance fighters in the resistance movements in Lebanon, could make the liberation of 2000. Alaa too was one of the resistance leaders and heroes in the July War 2006.

So he is the man of the battlefield and the leader of the battlefield. On another perspective, he is also a leader in building the deterrence force of the resistance besides Martyr Leader Hajj Imad Mughniyeh [May Allah reward him in Heaven]. In fact, Hajj Alaa was charged with building a special force in the Islamic Resistance. Praise be to Allah, this force grew, developed, and now has become a true force which the "Israeli" enemy takes seriously into consideration. This is the stage in the resistance which, with martyrs, martyrdom, sacrifices, wounds, patience, and a popular embrace, had always made victories from 2000 to 2006, and it is still in the position of confrontation. In this stage, I would like to highlight some points:

First: Hajj Alaa represents a generation of Lebanese youth who believed in the choice of the resistance.

Allow me to tackle these points through the words, terms, stances, analyses, and theories which were proposed those days - i.e. after "Israel" invaded Lebanon in 1982. At that time, there were various viewpoints, visions, and stances. Alaa and his brethren in the Islamic Resistance, as is the case in the Amal Movement, the Lebanese national parties, the Lebanese Islamic movements, and the Palestinian factions in the Lebanese territories, did not wait for anyone. At that time they used to talk about a united Arab strategy or a sole Arab strategy. But these men did not wait for the Arab states, the official Arab regimes, the Arab League, the Arab armies, or an Arab consensus.

Today, we Lebanese know that had we as Lebanese waited for a united Arab strategy or the Arab League, or the Arab armies, "Israel" would have now been still in the South, Rashayya, East Bekaa, Mount Lebanon, the coastal road, the capital Beirut, and the suburbs of Beirut. This is if it did not proceed towards the Mount and Bekaa until reaching the north. Had the Lebanese popular resistance not been launched and had not the Palestinian factions responded to it - to preserve the right of the Palestinian forces - where would Lebanon have been today? "Israel" would have been in Lebanon, ruling and controlling Lebanon. The settlements would have been in Lebanon, and thousands of Lebanese young men and women would have been in "Israeli" prisons in Ansar and other detention centers.

So this is the first point which must always be vivid: Our choice to liberate our land was the resistance and is still the resistance, to liberate the rest of the territories which are still occupied, in the Sheba Farms and Kafar Shouba Hills. If we are to wait for the Arab League, an Arab consensus, or an Arab strategy, their fate will be the fate of all the territories which "Israel" gulped. Indeed, we must here record that Syria and the Islamic Resistance in Iran always stood with the resistance in Lebanon and embraced, supported, and backed it.

Today, many of the Arab states which label us as terrorists have nothing to do with this resistance, these victories, and these achievements. Show me, what do these states have to do with the resistance? They have nothing to do - politics, financing, and arming. Besides the Syrian regime, is there any Arab regime which dares to provide the Lebanese or Palestinian resistance with arms, anti-air craft, rockets, or military capacities?

Well, this challenge is still valid. If we are terrorists, the Arab states are invited to provide the Palestinian resistance with arms, capabilities, and money to buy arms or to make their own weapons. They do not dare to do so. They have nothing to do with all of this achievement, movement, and victories.

Moreover, Hajj Alaa belongs to that generation of Lebanese youth who believed that what protects Lebanon, this country, this land, this people, this sovereignty, and this national dignity, is the autonomous power, capacities, will, and presence. This is what later developed to the term or formula: "Army, People, and Resistance". Since 1982 to after 2000, until our day up until the Day of Judgment, what protects this country is its army, people, and resistance. Whoever waits or expects that now, or any day, that the Arab League, the Arab consensus, or the Arab strategies would protect Lebanon against "Israeli" greed, "Israeli" threats, and "Israeli" aggressiveness will be betting on a mirage and illusion.

This is what was asserted in 2006. On the contrary, in 2006 we said what I will repeat today. On that day, we told you we do not want anything from you. Just leave us alone. Today too, we tell these regimes: We do not want anything from you. We do not want money, arms, support, backing, or blessing. We just want you to leave us alone. Leave this resistance, this country, and this people alone. That's because they are not leaving the country alone and not only the resistance. Indeed, what used to take place and is still taking place is not only that they do not help, but also they evoke the "Israeli" enemy to stage aggressions. We all know what took place in the July War.

The "Israelis" said it, and the Arabs did not deny. At least the Arabs did not deny that their leaderships and governments contacted "Israel" and requested from it to continue the war on Lebanon during the July War, just as they acted during the wars on Gaza. The "Israelis" said so, and the concerned Arab governments did not deny that.

O' my brother! We do not want anything from you. We don't want to charge you with anything, and we never charged you with anything. What I want to say in the presence of the Martyr Leader and his brethren the martyrs is that this true, autonomous national power is unconditional, and it is this power that is guarding the country.

Indeed, this formula with resistance at its center imposes a state of deterrence on the enemy which daily talks about the resistance in Lebanon and its weapons, rockets, numbers, expertise, leaders, brains, and capacities. They consider it the primary threat, the central threat, and the first danger at the current state. They fear it and seriously take it into consideration.

This is what guards our country. As for begging to Arab regimes and seeking their content and yielding to them, and even if we begged to them and yielded to them, we will not find them by our sides in the days of hardships. Where are they?

Thanks to its presence, jihad, sacrifices, victories, and achievements, this resistance gained confidence, respect, dignity, and holiness among the Arab and Islamic peoples. This is very natural. We know that as Prophet Mohammad [Peace be upon him and his Household] said: The benefaction is in his nation until the Day of Judgment. We know that all benefaction is in the peoples of our nation. It was natural to see all these reactions, especially the popular and some official reactions, against the oppressive decisions that labelled Hizbullah as a terrorist group. This is what I will tackle again in the last part of my speech because the resistance now forms the remaining hope, and it now forms the only open horizon before our nation and the peoples of our nation to restore the sanctities and dignity.

Second: In the framework of the resistance and the stage of the resistance too, the talk of today is Arab dignity, the Arab identity, and Arab rights.

I want to ask: Since 1967, who has been humiliating the Arabs? Allow me to talk to some Arabs. Who is humiliating the Arabs, the Arab nation, the Arab armies, the Arab peoples, and the Arab rulers more than "Israel"? "Israel" is humiliating the Arabs every day in moving along with occupying their lands and killing their people in Palestine - the children, the young men, and the young ladies. Today there is a new violation to the al-Aqsa Mosque. Isn't this a humiliation to Arab dignity, Arab sanctities, Arab bravery, the Arab nation, and Arab rights? What are you doing towards that? What did you do since 1967 to today?

On the contrary, should an Arab regime or army revolt - as was the case in Egypt and Syria - or should the resistance revolt - as was the case of the Palestinian resistance movements and later the resistance in Lebanon - fight "Israel" and restore Arab dignity, you - led with the Saudi regime - conspire on these miserables, on these leaders, on these regimes, on these armies, and on these resistance movements. This is known since the tenure of Abdul Nasser in Egypt to the various stages that followed, up until the Palestinian resistance movements. Well were these Shiites? No they were not.

The story of Shiites and Sunnis is a lie. The story of Shiites and Safawis is a lie. Was Abdul Nasser a Shiite? Is the Egyptian Army Shiite? Is the Syrian Army Shiite? Are the Palestinian resistance movements Shiite? To what extent did some Arab regimes conspire against them? What did they do to them with money, media, and security? They conspired against them with the "Israelis" and the Americans among others.

The problem is that the guarantee for these thrones from the first day of their establishment is defending "Israel", protecting "Israel", and not harming the existence of "Israel", the entity of "Israel", and the persistence of "Israel". Thus these regimes have always lined in the front facing the resisting regimes or the resisting armies or the resisting movements. What is taking place with us today is a continuity of this ancient strategy. This is not new. This is a continuity of the old and previous strategies. Today, who restored Arab dignity and some of the Arab rights, some of the Arab territories, and some of the Arab honor? It is this resistance in Lebanon which you are labeling as a terrorist group.

The second stage: The second stage is Bosnia. I wouldn't have talked about Bosnia were Martyr Alaa not known as Alaa of Bosnia. Anyway, I will tackle this stage first, to acknowledge the right and appreciate the martyr's jihad; second, because many used to ask: "What do you mean by Bosnia and was Hizbullah in Bosnia?"; and third, to tackle why we are labeled as a terrorist group.

In the early 90s of the past century, you remember that Yugoslavia disintegrated. Serbia was established, and later on the Black Mountain separated from it. There are other states called Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. A fierce war and very tough fighting took place in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Muslims in Bosnia and Herzegovina were deemed weak. Terrible massacres were perpetrated against them by the Serbs or the Serbian-Bosnian troops. Till today some search in cemeteries for missing individuals. Towns and villages were demolished. Women were raped. The catastrophe shook the entire world.

In Lebanon, some reacted to the cause of Bosnia, and there were two viewpoints:

Some adopted the viewpoint of the groups who assume the thinking exported by Saudi Arabia to the world for a hundred years till now. What did they come up with to support the oppressed Muslims in Bosnia? They said: We must hold the Christians in Lebanon responsible. We must take revenge, exert pressure, stage aggressions, and attack the Christians in Lebanon, especially the Orthodox [Christians], because that lessens the pressure and supports the oppressed Muslims in Bosnia.

And as a matter of fact, this group - which is a small extremist group indeed - does not represent the Sunnis at all. I reiterate again and again, they label the Sunnis unbelievers. What did this group do? Do you still remember? They placed bombs under highways in some places and targeted processions for Christian Orthodox clergymen. Churches were attacked as well as Christian cemeteries. However, the cause was addressed by the state, and the Lebanese unanimously agreed on condemning this conduct.

There was another viewpoint which said: What is the crime of Lebanon's Christians to hold them responsible for what is taking place in Bosnia and Herzegovina? In Serbia and Bosnia, there are people who are attacking and perpetrating massacres. It just so happened that they are Christians, and they likewise may have been Muslims. There are oppressed and persecuted people too, whoever wants to help them, he can do so, he can give them a helping hand. He may send them money and capabilities, and he may go and train them, help them, transfer his expertise to them. He may fight alongside them, and defend them.

These were the two viewpoints. Hizbullah adopted the second view point. As a matter of fact, and despite the fact that we were a burgeoning movement with a limited number of cadres and leaderships, as well as limited capacities, Hajj Alaa and a big group of brethren the same age as him, left the country, they left Lebanon, they left the front and the occupied territories - we are talking about the nineties when "Israel" was still in the security strip - and headed to Bosnia - that cold snowy land of which we know nothing, not even the language. In fact, this is the big question. Why? What is the reason?

In fact, the reason was the deep recesses of our moral and human hearts and living consciences. We would not make drastic changes in Bosnia should Hajj Alaa and his brethren go there. However, to satisfy ourselves, to satisfy Allah, and to satisfy our souls, we felt that that would sincerely be what we could do. We could send leaders, cadres, and fighters to Bosnia. That's all what we could do. We were not able to dispatch an army or thousands of fighters. We could not send arms or anything. Indeed we were in contact with the Bosnian government at that time and with the late President Ali Izetbegovic [May Allah have mercy on him] and in cooperation with other forces.

This is the story of Bosnia and Alaa of Bosnia. A martyr - Martyr Ramzi Mahdi - fell for us there too, and the brethren spent a long period of time there. They transferred their experience, opened training camps, partook in operation attempts, and fought alongside the Bosnians.

Do you consider that terrorism? We did not go to impose a decision on the people in Bosnia. We did not go to interfere in the political decision, the regime, the Constitution, or the national dialogue or anything. There were people who were daily being slaughtered. We went to assist them so that they would defend themselves. Let's discuss this from the human, moral, religious, legitimate, and legal perspective. Never mind! Label this as terrorism. There is something concerning Bosnia which I want to say for those who accuse us of being a sectarian resistance. When we went to Bosnia, were there Shia in Bosnia whom we went to defend? Were we defending the blood of Shia, the honor of Shia, and the money of Shia in Bosnia? Where are there Shia in Bosnia? Everyone knows that the Muslims in Bosnia are Sunnis.

Alaa, whom today we are holding this memorial in his honor here in his village - Ansar - where you are gathering, left his village, family, resistance, and occupied land along with his brethren and headed to Bosnia and Herzegovina which is thousands of kilometers away from his homeland, to defend the honor of our - allow me to use this term - Sunni Muslim brethren, as well as their blood, existence, and survival in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Would we be sectarian by doing so?
I will stop here as far as the stage of Bosnia is concerned.

Indeed, I was obliged to talk because he is Alaa of Bosnia. This is the story of Alaa of Bosnia, or else, did anyone hear what I have said now before? We did not deafen the world with this story, did we? We did not raise slogans and begrudge the Gulf States and the world this [story]. We did not raise funds from the bodies of our martyrs and the wounds of our fighters. That never took place. We went for the sake of Allah. We fought for the sake of Allah. We were wounded, and some were martyred for the sake of Allah. We do not ask for rewards or a word of thanks in return. We are performing our obligation in this world because we fear standing before the hands of Allah on the Day of Judgment. This is the truth.

The third stage is that of Iraq.

Indeed, before Iraq, Hajj Alaa and his brethren went to Syria. But I will keep Syria for the last stage.

When they were in Syria, the events started in Iraq a year or so ago when "ISIL" invaded Salahuddine province, Diyalah, a large section of the Anbar province, a part of Kirkuk province, Mosul, and was on the verge of [entering] the Iraqi capital, Baghdad.

All of Iraq was on that day threatened. Later we will talk and answer what was proposed today because this is one of the reasons behind labeling us as a terrorist organization. We interfered in Iraq. What is the story behind our going to Iraq? We will tackle it while talking about Hajj Alaa. In Iraq, Daesh [the Arabic acronym for the Takfiri "ISIS" group] staged aggressions against all the Iraqi people. They killed Sunnis, Shiites, Muslims, Christians, Arabs, Kurds, and Turkmen... They did not spare anyone.

Based on precise surveys, what befell Sunnis in Iraq by the hands of Daesh was by far more dangerous than what befell Shiites in Iraq. Daesh" was very near [to taking over] Iraq; even some Gulf States, Jordan, and some states in the region felt the danger that threatened everyone. Indeed, according to some of these Arab states, the plan backfired. They wanted Daesh to fight the Iraqi government and to fight the regime in Syria. But all considerations changed. Well, on that day, the Iraqis, the Iraqi government, parties, scholars, Sunnis, and Shiites - among others - called for an Iraqi stand in the face of this danger. The religious authority in Holy Najaf [came out] with a noticeably high tone and thus the famous fatwa was issued by His Eminence Grand Ayatollah Sayyed Ali Sistani [May Allah prolong his life span], that called for defensive jihad. Tens of thousands of Iraqi young men from the various sects and regions joined the fight.

At that time, our Iraqi brethren sought us for help. Well, what is required from us? They told us they do not want fighters as they have tens of thousands of fighters. They rather want a group of leaders and cadres who would help them form groups, run operations, train, and also fight in the field in some critical positions.

Well, this is Daesh that is threatening the Iraqi people, Iraq, the fate of Iraqis, and the fate of the region. I also want to add something which is essential as it is in our culture, faith, mind, and intellect. I want to confess that it is threatening the Holy shrines in Iraq, because they destroy everything. They demolish mosques, churches, and shrines. They did not spare anything. So this is required from us. If anyone thinks that a day will come in which we will wait for the Arab League, an Arab consensus, or Riyadh, that will lead nowhere, that is out of the question.

Well, at midnight, we summoned Hajj Alaa. I usually do not talk about the living leaders. We called for Hajj Alaa, Hajj Abu Mohammad Salman [the Martyr Leader], and Hajj Ibrahim. We withdrew some of our leaders from Syria, some from the South, and some from the various fronts in Lebanon, and sent them by plane to Baghdad. We withdrew a very big group of leaders and cadres from the fronts and dispatched them to Iraq, secretly. We did not make an announcement. We did not make an advertisement. We did not deafen the ears of the world. We did not do anything of this sort, because we wanted some minds to tolerate, and because we did not want to exploit this issue politically or on any other level either.

In Iraq, we used to fight under an Iraqi leadership. Now, I will tell you why I am saying this. In Iraq, we went to fight. We did not go to interfere with the Iraqis and their internal affairs, government, parties, elections, and choices. We do not want to impose anything on them as Saudi Arabia is doing in more than one country. No, there is a moral, human, religious, legitimate, jihadi, racial, and Arab obligation. We went to Iraq and fought there, and a group of our brethren are still there.

Well, what is the crime? Hizbullah interfered in Iraq to fight against whom? First, we fought against Daesh which is the enemy of all Iraqis. The whole world unanimously agrees on labeling Daesh as a terrorist organization. Let anyone in the world dare to say that Daesh is not a terrorist group. The world unanimously agrees on that. Even the Arab League, the Gulf Cooperation Council, and the Arab interior ministers in Tunisia recently labeled Daesh as a terrorist group.

Well, we are fighting the terrorist organization which is labeled by the world as a terrorist organization. How come we are labeled as terrorists? How come we are condemned? How come our martyrs are condemned? Why should Alaa and his brethren leave their homeland and go to Iraq to fight? The very logic of going to Bosnia applies here.

Today, too, who makes a difference in the formula of going to Iraq? It is the Iraqis themselves, the Iraqi forces, and the blessed Popular Mobilization Forces. We went to Iraq secretly, while you [75 states] met in Saudi Arabia and formed an international coalition under the USA to fight Daesh. Can you say what you have offered over more than one year till today in fighting Daesh in Iraq? Were you joking?

As I said, we fought under an Iraqi leadership. Were we fighting under a US leadership, they would not have labeled us as terrorists. See how absurd these paradoxes are! How can they form an Islamic military coalition that fights under the USA? Can you explain this to the people? How can it be an Islamic coalition and under the USA at the same time?

As for us, we used to fight and are still fighting in Iraq under the leadership of the Popular Mobilization Forces. It is a loyal, honorable, national Iraqi leadership. A genius from the Gulf said: To be able to crush Daesh, we must crush Hizbullah and the Popular Mobilization Forces in Syria. Poor guy! He did not hear that in Syria there are no Popular Mobilization Forces. There are national defense, popular defense, and popular forces. He does not know what he is saying.

The Popular Mobilization Forces are in Iraq. Here I am telling this genius: Were it not for the Popular Mobilization Forces in Iraq, Daesh would have been in your palaces and houses, enslaving your womenfolk and dishonoring you. However, the Iraqis with their blood, martyrs, and sacrifices are drifting this danger away from the entire region and all the peoples of the region and the peoples of the Gulf too.

Instead of showing gratitude to them and thanking them, you are showing ingratitude. What's this ungratefulness? My brother! No one had begrudged you anything; why are you so ungrateful? Why are you that much hardhearted? Why do you condemn the Iraqis who are defending and offering great sacrifices and falling as martyrs and wounded? There are tens of thousands of martyrs.

Here in Lebanon a martyr or two or three may fall. The number may vary. But in Iraq, there are thousands of martyrs who fall in battles, and they can restore the land.

In the past few days, the Popular Mobilization Forces with the support of the Iraqi forces in the region of what is left from Salahuddine liberated some 5000 kilometers and expelled Daesh from it. The liberated area is half the area of Lebanon, and it was liberated in a few days!

Obama shows up and says that 40% of the land which was controlled by Daesh in Iraq was restored. Blessed be you? Thanks to whom was it restored? With whose force was it restored? The Americans? Where are the Americans? The Americans gave a hand in Ramadi. Now in Mosul, they want to veto on it because the Popular Mobilization Forces must not fight in Mosul, though it is Iraqi land. This is our story in Iraq.

Is this to be called terrorism according to religion, humanity, ethics, law, and Arabism? The Arab chivalry is manifested when every Arab man goes to Iraq to defend the Iraqi people, whether Sunnis, Shiites, Arabs, Kurds, or Turkmen, and to defend the Iraqis and their honor and sanctities as well as the sanctities of the nation in Iraq, and not to label those who defend Iraq as terrorist. This is Arab chivalry.

As for those who act otherwise, they have nothing to do with Arabs, Arab identity, Arab chivalry, and Arab dignity.

Well, the last stage is that of Syria.

Hajj Alaa of Bosnia was one of the pioneer commanders who went to Syria. We would have better called him Alaa of Sham.

Well, we went to Syria. I will not reiterate to spare your time or else it will be redundant. Over the past years and on all previous occasions, we expressed our viewpoint and our reading of the events in Syria, the possible horizons, the political solutions, the insistence of some to refuse political solutions, their insistence on war and refusal of any form of reconciliation, the reasons they give for war, and those who stand before the war and this battle. I do not want to reiterate.

Based on all what I interpreted in the past, we identified that we have an obligation, and this is a point that is worth discussing. I even call some sides in the Arab world to stop for a while and contemplate. You may say that Hizbullah and the resistance are against "Israel", but there is controversy as per Syria. The issue is equivocal as you and I differ in our viewpoints. Well, there is no problem in that, but it is my right that you listen to my viewpoint and follow the facts, documents, and field developments besides what they said, what was said, what we said, what the Americans want, what the "Israelis" want, what the Arab regimes want, and what the nature of the targets in Syria is. Is there any problem in that?

We identified the situation, and we were honest in our gradual increase [in our intervention level]. Some people may say the Sayyed is giving excuses. No, the truth is that we were acting in a way to fulfill the obligations - the minimum of our obligation. Well, Damascus was in danger. The Shrine of Sayyeda Zainab was in danger. Then the area of Qusayr was in danger. Then the stance snowballed. It was really snowballing. We did not wish for that. It is not that our youth are valueless. We did not tell them that we are searching for a place in which you may fight as fighting is our hobby. We consider things with precision from the legitimate and jurisprudential perspective. We see if this obligation is in the interest of the country, the interest of the region, and the priority of the resistance is to confront "Israel" and the like.

One of the pioneer leaders who went to Syria was Martyr Leader Hajj Alaa, and he remained there to the last moment of his life. He had clear insight and vision and strong faith. He used to lead the battles in the field.

Well, the first time he was wounded and returned to Lebanon, he would have said: Enough! Isn't there anyone else in this army but Alaa? Let them replace me. Let me stay here. But no, that was not the case. As soon as he recovered, he went back to Syria. He was injured for the second time, and his injury was critical. He returned, was treated, recovered, and returned to Syria. He never gave any excuses. He had a family and seven children. It was his right to say: "That's enough! Let other brethren take my place".

However, Alaa, like many of his brethren in Syria, were completely aware of the battle as we explained. We do not fabricate reasons and pretexts. We do not find ourselves pretexts to fight in Syria. We are not embarrassed by anyone to fight in Syria. No one ordered us to fight in Syria, even Iran and His Eminence Supreme Leader Sayyed Khamenei. We did not receive an order from His Eminence the Supreme Leader. Actually we search for a legitimate permit. We have a legitimate permit, but we do not have an order: Go and fight or do so and so. This is our will, our decision, our understanding, and our awareness. Alaa represents all the brethren who were martyred in Syria and all his brethren who are still alive and fighting in Syria. We took the decision from this position - the position of understanding, vision, and insight.

Well, hereof I will move to the last section of my speech from the threshold of Syria. I want to tackle the recent tension that Saudi Arabia showed towards Lebanon and of which I tackled some of its aspects a few days ago. Now I want to talk a little further in the remaining time about some of the other aspects. Perhaps we do not have enough time to talk about all the aspects.

Today, Saudi Arabia is very much outrageous towards Lebanon. So let's make haste to please Saudi Arabia and calm it down. Why is Saudi Arabia angry? Everyone made his analysis and searched for the reasons. What is the truth? What is the reason? What is the secret? We talked about some points last time, and today I will continue what I mentioned last time.

So, Saudi Arabia is angry. It is furious from us. It has the right to get outrageous. I am talking realistically. I can understand this Saudi anger. Why? It's because when someone flops, the least he can do is to get furious. When someone gets angry and he can do anything, he tries to do it. This is a simplification of the fact.

Saudi Arabia is very much furious because of what is taking place in Syria. They thought that in Syria things will end in the first month or two. When we went to talk with some states and some sides in the Syrian opposition about a political solution, a reconciliation, and dialogue, someone said where is the acquittance? Here is our acquittance. We told them the Syrian leadership is ready to find a solution. It is ready for dialogue. It is ready to offer concessions. I said this before in detail.

The answer was always: No! No! No! For them, Syria will fall in a couple of months or at most in three months. No one cares about a political solution or for stopping the bloodshed or any other thing because all of them - led by Saudi Arabia - had in mind that in two or three months Syria will be in their hands. The first regional element which intervened most was Saudi Arabia. We know that at that time, one of the princes went to Oman. He was the one who conducted, intervened, spent the money, gave the orders.... I do not want to mention names. The names are known as well as who that person was and what he did.

The first month passed, the second month, the first year, the second year.... Every day, they say tomorrow the story will be over. Five years passed, and they were disappointed. Syria now is in a place other than that which they expected at the beginning of the events, which they thought would end in two, three, or four months.

There is a big failure there. Bargains are failing. They wanted to bring along NATO to fight in Syria. They wanted to bring along the Americans and others to fight in Syria. They worked on that. They thought the Americans and others work for them. They don't know that the Americans recruit the entire world in their project. That's why they are angry over what took place in Syria.

The same applies to Yemen. The evaluations of the new Saudi leadership are that we can - in a couple of weeks or maximum of three weeks or in a month or two - end the battle in Yemen. We lecture all the Arab states and the entire Arab world. This is the leadership of firmness and the kingdom of firmness. These are the kings and princes of firmness. We impose our authority on the world. We impose our leadership on the world. These are their considerations.

Or else, ask the Yemenis. Before the war in Yemen started, even the Yemenis who were disagreeing with each other would say: By God, we in Sana'a agreed on carrying national dialogue and on the outcome of the national dialogue, the Gulf Initiative... Everything was over. But the Saudis told them throw all of this aside. We want to put a military end to the cause.

But did things end in a week or two, or in a month or two? There is great failure in Yemen. Saudi Arabia is paying high costs today for its war on Yemen. They are paying very high human, financial, economic, political, and moral costs on the world, internal, and regional levels. There are high costs. Where is the scandal? Under the title of the War on Yemen is a war on the terrorist Houthis, as they refer to them. It is a war on the Yemeni people in fact, while enforcing those whom the entire world labeled as terrorists to control the southern provinces in Aden, Lahj, Abin, and Hadarmout, where they perpetrated terrible massacres.

A couple of days ago only, they attached an infirmary in Aden. Can anyone explain this to the world? I will explain this because no one else will. In the infirmary, there are elderly people. But who are serving these elderly people? There is a group of nuns and nurses. The nurses are Indian. According to them, there are infidels in the infirmary in Aden. They are infidels who must be slaughtered. We must kill them. By God, they are caring for these elderly people who are all Muslims.

The nuns are Christians. I don't know whether the Indian ladies are Hindus or Sikh or Muslims. They killed the nuns and the nurses and the Muslim elderly whom they found in their way. What is the problem in that? They are martyrs who will go to Heaven. Isn't this the mind of Daesh? This took place under the [eyes of] Saudi troops who are shelling and demolishing Yemen.

For whom are you offering the land? You are offering it to Daesh and al-Qaeda.

This is what took place in Aden. Other atrocities are being perpetrated in other cities and there are evidences for that. They flopped and will always flop. I assert to you, and I am absolutely convinced in every word I said since the first day: The Yemeni people can't but gain victory. This is the logic of Divine Justice and the laws and norms that govern in history and societies. The people who resist, stand steadfast, and remain firm, do not shake and feel afraid. They can't be defeated. They can't be defeated no matter how fiercely tyrants fight them.

So, they failed in Yemen. They failed in Syria. They flopped in Lebanon, and they are unsuccessful in Bahrain.

Where is the failure in Bahrain? In Bahrain, there is no war. The failure in Bahrain is in putting an end to the popular Intifada. For over five years, the people have been and are still demonstrating, crying, and raising their voices and are still committed to their peaceful movement. This is Saudi failure in Bahrain.

They came to hold us responsible. They search for someone to hold him responsible.

By God, you are exaggerating. We are grateful if we are the reason. Hizbullah is accused of intervening. I will tackle the issue of Bahrain and Yemen later on because they need some details, but today's occasion is linked to Alaa and Syria, Iraq, and Bosnia - the stages we tackled.

However, I would like to tell you that in case we really came to assume a great responsibility in frustrating these schemes, wars, and aggressive acts, we will be proud of that in this world and in the Hereafter. But, by God, you are exaggerating because things are not as such. This is not their true magnitude.

Well, they got angry; so they wreaked their wrath on all of Lebanon. Why did they wreak their wrath on all of Lebanon? That's because the Lebanese must get angry from Hizbullah? Why should the Lebanese get angry from Hizbullah? Go and see polls. Unfortunately, some research centers carry polls but they do not publish the results. The Lebanese - especially those who always talk about national interests - know that the Saudi project in Syria was toppling the regime no matter who would rule later on. Indeed, if they could rule, that would be the best for them. The same applies to Yemen. Their project is killing and toppling those opposing them, whether Daesh or al-Qaeda would rule in Aden, Abin, and Hadarmout or not. That is not important. The very mentality applies in Syria.

Well, if Syria did not remain steadfast, and al-Qaeda, Daesh, al-Nusra, and the owners of this intellect controlled Syria and did what they did in the infirmary in Aden, where would Lebanon, the Lebanese people, the Muslims of Lebanon, the Christians of Lebanon, and all those who talk today about moderation have been?

Those who are confronting Saudi Arabia in Syria are the true defenders of the Lebanese national interests. You can't blackmail the Lebanese. You can't say I am allowing you to work in the Gulf, so please let Syria fall in the hands of the terrorist Takfiri organizations which will later come and slaughter your children, enslave your womenfolk, and destroy your mosques and churches. No one accepts this logic. Blackmailing is unacceptable. Well, the reactions which we talked about last time started, and every day they come up with a pretext. For example, why don't you want to provide the army with weapons? They found out that if they give the army weapons, they will come to the hands of Hizbullah. This is the pretext Adel Al Joubeir gave today.

O' Lebanese ladies and gentlemen! At least since the state took off again and following the Taif Accord, did Hizbullah ever take a rifle, artillery, or rocket from the army willingly or by force? Let me know if that ever took place since the Taif Accord - i.e. for over thirty years till now. They are searching for pretexts, and the pretexts they give are invalid.

Well, the second measure was taken. The second important measure is that they put Hizbullah on the terrorist list in the Gulf Cooperation Council, and finally - hopefully - they took a decision in the Arab Interior Ministers Conference. Indeed, in this conference, they did not put a clause to the effect that Hizbullah is a terrorist organization. I am not making little of the issue. In fact, the Arab Interior Ministers must be more aware.

They mustn't be unmindful and unaware, they must be cautious to the effect whether this is their policy or not. When the conference was over, they issued the traditional closing statement. They typed the final statement and brought in the phrase "terrorist Hizbullah". The Saudis expected that this phrase would pass unnoticed. Who would raise his voice in the Arab Internal Ministers conference? The Iraqi Minister argued over the issue and took a stance. We thank him indeed. He refused and objected vehemently. The Algerian Minister abstained and said he can't move along. The Lebanese Minister committed himself to the official stance. We say that he devoted himself to the official governmental stance. We also thank the Lebanese Foreign minister. Great!

The others did not notice anything, and the closing statement was issued. There is no Arab consensus, but the statement was issued. Later on, the reactions started to come out one following the other. This is what I want to tackle by the end of my word. It is clear that the Tunisian reaction was the most prominent. We know Tunisia's reaction regarding the resistance and the Palestinian cause. Well, one of the reasons may be that the conference took place on the land of Tunisia. After all, the Tunisian Interior Minister did not make any move what angered the Tunisian people. Then we found a different reaction in Tunisia. Personalities and parties of various trends, whether in power or not, parliamentary blocs, syndicates with honorable histories, dailies, media outlets, societies, popular classes, as well as the official stance which was by the President of Tunisia - Essebsi - who was quoted as saying, and the statement of the Tunisian Foreign minister had in his stance: Tunisia does not adopt this decision and calls for addressing it.

Indeed this is a great and excellent reaction. Frankly speaking, we extend our special thanks to Tunisia and its president, parties, parliament, syndicates, dailies, and dear people because they expressed their truth and the truth of this nation. We did not ask from them or from anyone anything. My brethren and I met on the very day of their conference, and we agreed that we would not contact anyone or call on anyone to take a stance as per the Gulf Cooperation conference. Let the people evaluate the stance for themselves, and let everyone act according to his interest and as he finds fit. This is the value of the stance. It is that no one is embarrassed with us. We did not contact anyone and ask anything from anyone.

Well, this is the Tunisian stance. It was great, and we are very thankful for it. The stances in Lebanon, Palestine, Syria, Iraq, Egypt, Algeria, Jordan, Iran, Pakistan, the Maghreb, Mauritania, and even within the Gulf states and other states on the popular level were excellent stances. Indeed, Algeria, besides Syria and Iran, took a clear stance on the official level.

Before all of this that we have witnessed, I want to comment with a couple of words:

First: We thank all of those who showed solidarity with us and defended us and condemned and denounced and refused the Gulf decision of labeling Hizbullah as a terrorist organization, as well as the move of Arab Interior Ministers to this effect. We thank everyone, and this is for their benediction in this world and in the Hereafter.

Second: What took place expresses, and is an indicator, of the status that the resistance has among the Arab peoples. So whoever is trying to say that this resistance came to an end or is crushed is mistaken. The resistance, the Palestinian cause, Palestine, and the Arab-"Israeli" struggle are still forcefully present.

Third: This shout we heard and saw in the past few days has a very high value; it is incomparable to the demonstrations of millions in the past. Why? That's because the general atmosphere that dominates the Arab world is that of the control of money, the media, the regimes, and religious and political Takfirism. So everyone who took a decision in these days is exposing himself and his personal, party, and national interests to danger because he would be standing in the face of the royal wrath, the anger of kings, and the rage of princes. Saudi Arabia will not tolerate him as it did not show tolerance towards the Lebanese who remained silent on Hizbullah, as well as the Tunisians, Egyptians, Syrians, and Iraqis, among others, who refused its decision of labeling Hizbullah as a terrorist organization.

This shout is in the face of the arrogant ruler who is controlling with money, and even more dangerously, with the media and religious and political Takfirism. What prevents them from having some of their sheikhs issue a fatwa to the effect that everyone who repels this decision will be repellent to Allah and a polytheist? They may label all people as infidels. Still all these people took this decision in all the countries and in all these squares.

The following point which is highly important tackles the importance of the official and popular reactions which are in fact a very strong message to "Israel". Before my two speeches, "Israel" referred to what is taking place as a chance and presented itself as a friend and defender of the Sunnis. Some hypocrite, fraud liars, whether they are politicians or media outlets, altered what I said and quoted me as saying what I never said. They said that I said that Sunnis became allies. I did not say this, and all of you heard what I said. I said that "Israel" is presenting itself as such.

Some want to help "Israel" and present it as such. The king of Bahrain received a Zionist rabbi in his palace in Manama. Bahraini scholars and prominent figures are hurled in prisons, while the Zionists are being received in the palace of the king in Manama! You can read what the King of Bahrain told the Zionist rabbi.

The reactions we heard are the answer of the Arab peoples, who are by and large Sunnis, to "Israel": Stop dreaming. If you, "Israel", were happy that the Gulf Cooperation Council put Hizbullah on the blacklist; you were disappointed by the reactions. This is the message to "Israel" conveyed via the reactions: Do not dream! It is impossible for the Arab and Islamic world and people, that a day will come in which your existence would become normal, and in which we will accept your presence and existence. You can't become the friends of our Arab and Muslim peoples, let alone being allies. You are enemies and you will always be enemies. You are terrorists, and you will always be terrorists in our view points. This is the strong message.

Yes "Israel" which is occupying our sanctities and Palestine, which kills Palestinians every day, which hurls thousands of Palestinians into prison, and which persecutes Palestinians all around the world, must hear the answer.

The noble martyr Omar Nayyef was displaced and expelled from his country, Palestine, and found refuge in Bulgaria. The "Israeli" Mossad killed him inside the Palestinian Embassy in Bulgaria. The Arab world does not make any move. None of the Arab regimes said a word or objected. None of them filed a complaint to the Security Council. The Arab League did not issue a statement because he was a Palestinian man, and it is "Israel" who killed him. So there is no problem in that.

The message "Israel" received in the past few days is that you, "Israel" are the enemy, and you will always be the enemy. No Arab regime may naturalize with "Israel". Neither the Saud dynasty, nor any other dynasty, nor any regime, nor the counselors of rulers, the jurists of the court, nor the media on which millions of dollars are spent, nor the lies of sectarian and factional sedition, nor sectarian and factional provocation can lead to naturalization with "Israel". Sectarian and factional provocation may ignite sedition between Sunnis and Shiites and between Muslims and Christians, but will not lead to naturalization with "Israel". Even this which is their last weapon will not lead to any results.

Look at Egypt which inked the Camp David [accord] a long time ago. How did its parliament deal with the MP who naturalizes with "Israel" and who received the "Israeli" ambassador in his home? Egypt has diplomatic ties with "Israel", and Cairo is the seat of an "Israeli" Embassy. Still, when the Egyptian MP, who hosted the "Israeli" Ambassador in his home, entered the parliament, he was hurled with shoes. The overwhelming majority in the Egyptian parliament took tough measures against this naturalizing MP.

These are the Arabs. This is the Arab identity. These are the Arab peoples. This is the Arab nation. "Israel" must come to understand the truth. Should this dynasty or that dynasty shake hands with you and take you in their arms, they will fall with you. Whoever wants to upheave you, Zionist killers, criminals, and massacre perpetrators in Deir Yassine, Jenin, and Qana, and against Egyptians, Tunisians, and the peoples of the region, will fall with you. This is the message.

No soon, Saudi Arabia will discover, if there is a mind that thinks, that it is engaged in a battle which it will surely lose.

I will not tackle the rest of the measures but we will follow up with them one by one. After all we do not want to intimidate; there are things which the Lebanese said but the Saudis didn't. The Lebanese provided them with suggestions.

Before you and in the presence of the soul of the Martyr, Leader Hajj Ali Ahmad Fayyad, Hajj Alaa of Bosnia and his brethren martyrs, I assert to you that we will guard our country against dangers. We will guard its civil peace and national unity.

We will always be the resistance that will stand as an unconquerable fortress against "Israeli" threats and greed. The resistance will always be the hope of the nation in achieving dignity and liberation. We will always be in the fields where we must be, no matter how accusations and lies mushroom and no matter how great sacrifices are. When we offer our most precious leaders and men as martyrs, we will always be the word of rightfulness and the cry of righteousness in the face of the tyrant ruler no matter how atrocious and ferocious he is.

We will always be partners in making victory in the time of victories, and we will always foretell of triumphs to come God willing.

Thanks to you, to your embrace, to your love, to your support, to the noble families of martyrs, and to your tolerance and steadfastness, we will continue on this path, and the end will not be but victory, benediction, and blessings God willing. Peace be upon you and Allah's mercy and blessings.

Source: al-Ahed News, Translated by website team