Hassan Nasrallah: We Suffered a Severe Blow; Gallant: Hezbollah Will Pay a Higher Price

Following a suspicious explosion of thousands of pagers, radios, and other communication equipment belonging to Hezbollah forces in Lebanon, the Secretary-General of Hezbollah stated in a speech on Thursday, September 29, that his group has suffered a "severe and unprecedented blow". Hassan Nasrallah said in his speech, "We are realistic, and this was a significant blow in terms of human and security aspects." He also reported that Israel has sent a message to his group stating that if Hezbollah Lebanon does not cease its threats, it should expect "greater actions" against it. He said, "We know that our enemy has a technological advantage over us" and emphasized that "we have suffered a severe and unprecedented blow, but it will not take us down." The Secretary-General of Hezbollah stated that Israel "crossed all red lines with this action" and added that in his view, these actions "constitute a declaration of war" against Lebanon. Following these remarks, Yoav Gallant, the Israeli Defense Minister, announced on Thursday evening that Israel would continue military operations against Hezbollah. Gallant stated, "In this new phase of the war, there are significant opportunities, but there are also great dangers. Hezbollah feels pressured, and our ongoing military actions will continue." He added, "Our goal is to ensure the safe return of northern Israeli residents to their homes. Over time, Hezbollah will pay a higher price." Israel has not claimed responsibility for the explosion of Hezbollah's communication devices. However, in addition to Hezbollah and Iranian officials, the extremist group Hamas, which is on the list of terrorist organizations by the U.S. and the EU, has also blamed Israel for these explosions. The Lebanese Ministry of Health announced on Wednesday evening, September 28, that as a result of the new wave of explosions of radios in the country, 25 people were killed and 708 were injured. Reports indicate that these radios were used by Hezbollah members. A day earlier, the explosion of pagers in the hands of Hezbollah-affiliated individuals left 12 dead and 2,323 injured. Hassan Nasrallah, the Secretary-General of Hezbollah, thanked Iran for attending to some of the injured. While the Secretary-General of Hezbollah was speaking, loud sounds of warplanes passing by were heard, which news agencies reported to be Israeli fighter jets breaking the sound barrier over Beirut, creating sounds similar to bomb explosions, causing panic. A day after the surprise attack on October 15 by the extremist group Hamas on Israeli cities and settlements, exchanges of fire began between Hezbollah and the Israeli army. Hezbollah claims that its goal of rocket, missile, and drone attacks on Israel is to alleviate pressure on the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. The exchange of fire between Israel and Hezbollah has so far led to the evacuation of many areas in northern Israel and southern Lebanon. In his speech on Thursday, Hassan Nasrallah referred to this situation, saying, "After the attacks on Tuesday, we received messages through official and unofficial channels that our goal is to stop your attacks on the north and to stop supporting attacks on Gaza. They told us this, and said if you do not stop, we will take greater actions." He added that "Israel's goal is to separate the two fronts." The Secretary-General of Hezbollah also stated, "Whatever the consequences and whatever happens in the region, the resistance front in Lebanon will not cease supporting Gaza and the West Bank and will continue on its path." He rejected any cessation of hostilities with Israel at the border that could allow tens of thousands of Israeli residents to return to northern areas and spoke of "retribution" and revenge. This comes while Israeli officials had previously emphasized that removing Hezbollah forces from the border with Israel is their main goal in their actions in the northern border, and for this purpose, they have recently shifted the focus of their military actions from the Gaza Strip to the northern border. Meanwhile, despite the Secretary-General of Hezbollah acknowledging that his group, supported by the Islamic Republic, has suffered a "significant and unprecedented blow," the Commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps sent a message to him on the same day stating that in his view, Israel has suffered a "new major defeat." According to Mehr News Agency, Hossein Salami, the Commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, continued in his message to Hassan Nasrallah that Israel "will soon face a crushing response from the resistance front." Iranian officials refer to the collection of their supported militia groups as the "resistance front." As part of the increasing pressure from Israel on the Iran-backed Hezbollah group, the Israeli army bombed Hezbollah positions in southern Lebanon on Thursday, September 29. On this day, the Israeli army announced that it targeted six "infrastructure sites" of Hezbollah and a weapons depot in southern Lebanon. The National News Agency of Lebanon also reported airstrikes on several cities in the south of the country and shelling of these areas by Israel. In recent months, the exchange of fire has forced tens of thousands of people on both sides of the border to leave their homes.