Monday, August 17, 2009

Speech delivered by Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah on the Divine Victory Anniversary

I take refuge in Allah from the stoned devil. In the Name of Allah, The Compassionate, The Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah, The Lord of the world. Peace be on our Master and Prophet – The Seal of Prophets – Abi Al Qassem Mohamad Bin Abdullah and on his chaste and kind Household, chosen companions and all the prophets and messengers. Dear audience peace be upon you and Allah's blessing and mercy

First, I would like to welcome you all on the day of your victory, on the day of your glory, honor and triumph, on the day of Lebanon's new resurrection and on the day of victory offered by the resistance, people, army, all Lebanon, all Arabs, all Muslims and all free men all over the world. I welcome you in this square where we have always met to celebrate victories and the glorious stands of martyrs. It is my duty too to pay tribute to the audience massing in Baalbeck to attend the Zajal (Lebanese traditional poetry) ceremony. It is my duty to address – on your behalf – the chaste and pure souls of martyrs – the martyrs among the resistance fighters from all factions, the martyrs among the Lebanese army officers and security forces and the civil martyrs among our dear and precious people whether Lebanese, Palestinians or Syrians who were martyred during July War. It's my duty to address all the wounded – some of whom are still suffering from injuries. It's my duty to pay tribute to all those whose homes and welfare were demolished. I pay tribute to all those who remained steadfast in their land or were displaced from their lands but remained steadfast. I pay tribute to all those who embraced the displaced from among their people in mosques, churches, schools and homes. I pay tribute to all those who stood with the resistance and supported and backed it with arms, money, blood, position, speech, tears, true emotions and supplication. I pay tribute – without mentioning names because the list would be very long – to all Arab, Islamic and world peoples, all leaders, forces, movements and governments which backed our people, resistance and nation during the Zionist aggressive war in July. Praise is first and above all to Allah, the Lord of the world who blessed us with victory, backed us and defended us, and held our hearts steadfast and our souls peaceful and defeated our enemy and blessed us with glorious victory.

Brothers and sisters! After the aggressive war came to an end like on this day and the legendary stand of our people who left the places of displacement and returned to the lands of steadfastness despite demolition, destruction and millions of cluster bombs much was said about this war, its causes, reasons, motives, schemes, background, events, developments, courses, incidents, aims, results, morals, lessons and repercussions on the Lebanese level , the usurping entity, Palestine, the region and the development of the American project. It was normal that words come to no end. There still remains much to be said because we were before a historic legend made by Lebanon and the Lebanese people. It was a true miracle made by Lebanon and the Lebanese people. It must be tackled from all its perspectives and dimensions whether cultural, social, spiritual, emotional, political, military, strategic, tactics… Among what must be tackled is the following question: What if the resistance was defeated in Lebanon? What would be the image of Lebanon, Palestine and the entire Islamic and Arab region?

Today we are before this legend made by Lebanon, its people, resistance, state and vital villages. For thirty three days, it was the first and only news headline worldwide. I do not want to go into evaluations or answer such question – though they are of much importance – because I will give the priority in the available time to the statue quo and the current and upcoming threats. I do not want to talk about the media uproar and the current threats, read the upcoming stage and the current and upcoming dangers to offer for you and occupy you with political analysis. Rather I will offer you a reading that will lead to stances that concern all of us. One of the special characteristics of the contemporary experience of the resistance in Lebanon is that it tackles issues with such transparency and transfers this responsibility to a public responsibility which we all shoulder whether in thinking about it, analyzing it, getting preoccupied with it, working and getting ready to reach results. But before ushering into our main topic, I would like to read for you just a short text which has to do with the results of July War. The text is for the current enemy Premier Netanyahu but he said this text some time after July War and before he became a Premier. In this text he draws a comparison between the six-day-war in 1967 and the 33-day-war in 2006. Netanyahu said: The six-day-war enabled Israel to survive and make peace agreements. The 1967 war signaled the transformation of a state with many question marks surrounding it into an unbeatable state. That was made possible through expanding the area of the state from 12kms before 1967 to 70km and through controlling Mount Yahuda and Mount Sumeria i.e. the West Bank which height is 1000m (what blocks the way before throwing the Jews in the sea). Following the outcome of the six-day-war and the Day of Indulgence War in 1973, it became deep-rooted in the consciousness of some of the Arab world the saying that Israel is an undefeatable state. The Israeli victory and deterrence force formed a decisive element in the Arab states reaching the conviction of having to acknowledge the state of Israel and signing peace agreements with it. All of that followed the repercussions of the war then. Thus we signed peace agreements with Egypt and Jordan and we had indications that we can go for reconciliation with the Palestinians. However, since the unilateral pullout from Lebanon in 2000 and the unilateral withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, and after Lebanon War II (July War), our track changed the other way round.

So Mr. Netanyahu what's the new track now? It is evident that Israel today is no longer an unbeatable state.

Question marks on the survival of the state of Israel were paused again from friends and foes alike. Even the friends of Israel started wondering whether Israel is a state that potentially may survive. That's enough to say about the repercussions of July War. This speech was said before Gaza War. Indeed after the legendary steadfastness and the miraculous victory in Gaza, these words became asserted more than any other time in the past.

In the past few weeks, there had been media and political uproar in Israel supported by some US and Western stances, particularly British stances. Topics tackled by these statements, uproar and threats varied. Many questions were raised and imposed themselves on the regional and Lebanese statue quo. Many contacts on this issue took place. Here I am telling you: We do not believe that these threats and all this uproar which we heard from Israeli officials indicate an imminent Israeli war on Lebanon. We do not believe in that. These threats have other and various goals, including psychological war. The psychological war is not the sole goal. The threats are not only to cause a psychological war. There is no true war now. One of the goals of the threats is the psychological war.

In brief we can build an indicator which is not 100% certain. Israelis are now as we were decades ago. He who talks much and threats much does not frighten. When the Israelis talking much, that means they are unable to do anything. When they keep silent as a serpent we must open our ears attentively and be cautious.

These threats and this uproar have many aims. We will tackle these goals to face them. I will rely on Israeli texts and not on my analysis.

First: This media uproar aims at targeting the formation of the Lebanese government through warning those who are forming it that if you allowed Hezbollah to partake in the government, Lebanon must bear the repercussions. We will demolish the infrastructure and the Lebanese cabinet must assume the responsibility of such and such... So the uproar aims above all at pressing or obstructing the formation of the government. Second they aim at pressuring Hezbollah not to partake in the Lebanese government so that it would be formed now. Thirdly the Zionist enemy is worried, annoyed and vexed should a national unity government – a government of partnership and sharing - be formed.

The response is to make haste and participate together to form a national unity government, a national agreement government, a coalition government…. Call it whatever you want. So there is a security, political, social, economic and living need to have a national unity government as soon as possible.

Second: Hezbollah must participate forcefully in the government. Well you have heard me wondering during Ridwan Operation Anniversary: Shall we participate or not? What shall we do? What shall our allies do? But now – to vex Netanyahu – we must participate. So this is the first response. We frustrate such threats when we present as soon as possible to the Lebanese, Zionists and the world a national unity government and a national agreement government. Thus we say that this uproar is valueless.

Another goal for this uproar is the attempt to bring back discord, crisis and tension to Lebanon. This is what the Israelis are saying. They frankly said that in the past weeks the situation settled. Tension eased and there is a quiet and soft debate between political forces. This makes the resistance at ease. We must not allow the resistance to be at ease in Lebanon. So let's arouse anew the topic of threats, arms, resistance and Hezbollah. Let's threat the Lebanese: We will demolish you, strike your government and your infrastructure so that discord is restored. This aim also was not achieved. Praise be to Allah the general atmosphere in the country is good and positive. It's true some odd voices were heard commenting but no soon the atmosphere cooled down and consequently the Lebanese and the political forces will not succumb to this Israeli goal.

A third goal of this uproar is the endeavor to amend the mandate of the UNIFIL. The UN Secretary General report over the implementation of UN resolution 1701 and extending the mandate of the UNIFIL in the South was about to be released. Before the incident that took place in the town of Khirbet Selem, the Americans and the Israeli raised the issue of amending the UNIFIL’s mandate, the issue of arms, armament, and the access of arms to the south of Litani. The aim was amending the mission of the UNIFIL. Just to remind the UNIFIL has one mission in southern Lebanon which is to back the Lebanese army and other legitimate forces only. Consequently, the UNIFIL cannot erect checkpoints, raid houses, search spots… These are the missions of institutions. If it was summoned for help, they come to help. They wanted to amend its mandate to transform this force into a multi-national force as suggested back in July War so as to act independently from the Lebanese army and government. So it might have the right to erect checkpoints, arrest, raid and search. This uproar aims at serving this target. The explosion incident in Khirbet Selem was exploited to push things in this direction. This goal also failed due to the official stance in Lebanon and the political forces in Lebanon which unanimously agreed on rejecting amending the international resolution or on making any amendment in the mission of the UNIFIL. This goal also failed and came to an end.

Fourth: Another goal for these threats is to reopen the file of the resistance arms. Indeed with the anniversary of the war, even within the Zionist entity there were lengthy debates: What has this war led to? What goals did it achieve? For example, if Olmert – who is gone now - was still in power he would have repeated the achievements. Imagine what would have he said! Now the state which has the strongest army in the region and the most powerful air force in the region had launched a war for thirty-three days. What are the targets and the great achievement made? It's that they prevented me from delivering a speech among the people or from walking on the street. What a goal and a great achievement! (As for me this is more comfortable! I used to deliver the speech while standing; now I do that while sitting!) In the framework of such debates, Israeli officials evoke the issue of the resistance arms and power. Well, they start with inciting the international community and pressuring Lebanon, the Lebanese government, Syria and Iran. They caused an uproar saying that if you did not take decisive measures to prevent the resistance from arming, the region would be on the verge of war. This is one of the goals of this uproar. Indeed I am not concerned now with opening the file of armament. Are we making armaments or not? Where? How? In this context we are usually not concerned with making comments. Still if there is something which is appropriate to be said – as we say everything in its due time and here I am only commenting on this goal - I would like to tell all the Lebanese people (and I will go back to this point later): Our dear and precious people: This precious and dear land lies next to an enemy whom we know his historic greed. He still relies on allegations which are more than three thousand years old. In face of this enemy's greed and threats and in a world ruled by the law of the jungle and not the international law; in a world where the strong rules and the weak is slaughtered, where right is deemed wrong and what's wrong is deemed right and where facts are being falsified, rights are being usurped, sanctities are being violated and millions are being killed for the sake of American and western oil and weapons companies; in a world ruled by the law of the jungle, only a strong people, country and nation might survive. Whoever imagines that he may protect his people and nation through alliances and relations must be cautious and benefit from all past experiences so as not to be sold in the international market of politics when the right price is paid. No people are protected by alliances and relations. In the first place, they are protected by their self- power, unity, will and determination to live with dignity.

Among the goals of this uproar and these threats is the psychological war. Continuous and ongoing psychological war is one of the goals. It aims at targeting the convictions of our people and the peoples of the region. It aims at targeting our hearts, conscious, determination, will, seriousness, confidence and hope in the future. It aims at keeping the Lebanese people and the peoples of the region in a state of worry, tension and disorder. This psychological war has failed. I want to remind the enemy of Sharm Sheik in 1996. Then not only Netanyahu, Liebermann and his deputy in the Foreign Ministry (who talks much) but also the whole world (America, the West and even China, Russia, Latin America and a great number of Arab states) convened after the martyrdom operations in Al Qods and Tel Aviv which were executed by our brethren fighters in Hamas and Jihad. They came out with an international consensus that classifies three groups as being terrorists and which must be eliminated: Hezbollah, Hamas and Islamic Jihad. They were mentioned in name. We must exterminate these groups and dry up their financial sources. We must fight them all over the world because they are terrorists groups. In Sharm Sheikh 1996, a universal war was announced against the resistance movements in Lebanon and Palestine. But I still remember that day when we convened in one of the squares in Dahyieh (Beirut Southern Suburbs) and spoke out our response. Before such a psychological war, we must cite the holy Qoranic verse which we memorize by heart: (Men said to them: A great army is gathering against you – so fear them: but it only increased their faith: they said: for us Allah suffice, and He is the best disposer of affairs). The whole world took a resolution to exterminate, crush and wipe you from existence. Your will grew stronger. Your will became more deep-rooted. Your certitude became greater. Why did your faith increase? On whom do you depend and trust? On Allah (they said: for us Allah sufficeth, and He is the best disposer of affairs). Following this stand during those days, no soon the Grapes of Wrath took place in April 1996. It took place weeks later. Still the resistance remained steadfast and gained victory. So such psychological war did not in the past and will not now or in the future be useful. I tell all those who are troubling themselves with psychological war: Such psychological war works with a society such as the Israeli community and other societies. But with people who have faith and trust in Allah, have hope in the future and have determination, will and the soul of sacrifice and who do not fear death and believe that Allah will back them and support them no psychological war is useful. In the contrary, that increases their faith and consecrates their conviction. There is a very nice Tradition which says that Allah Almighty have revealed to His Prophet David (pbuh). It says: "Whoever among my servants seeks protection in me (i.e. in Allah) instead of in any of my creatures (i.e. trusted, depended and resorted to Me) and I knew that in his intentions (i.e. he is honest in his resort to Allah and trust in Him) should heavens and the world conspire against him (not only Netanyahu, Liebermann, America and Britain) and all who are in them, I will make a way out for him from all of that".

Allah Almighty makes for whoever trusts in Him and depends on Him a way out even if all who are in heavens and the world conspired against him. This is the essence of the victory in July War. Another Tradition tackles the believer's trust, determination and steadiness: "Whoever seeks protection in Allah, Allah protects him. Whoever dedicates himself to Allah, Allah accepts him. Then this servant does not care should heavens fall on Earth." So should heavens fall on Earth, the will, determination, faith and steadfastness of such a human being would never be shaken. Brothers and sisters! In the framework of this psychological war, I would like to address all those who assess and study July War. Well I know that friends and foes alike study July War. It was examined in then Pentagon. Committees from senior generals in America and Russia and other places around the world were formed to study it. We in Lebanon are concerned in studying this experience also in the framework of our examination of the defense strategy. Following July War experience in Lebanon and following Gaza War, I tell all analysts here and in any place in the world: Before examining arms and their quality, (Do we have anti-tanks and anti-aircraft or not? What rockets do we have? What's there quantity?) and before examining the combating squads, strategy, tactics, plots and schemes, examine man. So it's not arms that count. It's not possessing all the arms in the world that counts. One day Imam Moussa Sadre (May Allah return him sound and safe) said while addressing and calling on the people of the South to resist the Israeli aggressions (so as to express their steady will): "We will fight you with stones and with our nails and teeth." So before talking about anti-tanks and anti-aircraft, search for the man who is ready to protect himself with stones, teeth and nails. There isn't any man who does not own nails and teeth and stones. So whoever have the will fights, remains steadfast, guards his honor and gains victory at last. Some make arguments with us and with me personally on July War and the promise of victory saying that was an adventure. How did you tell the people: As I used to promise you victory, I promise you victory again? Through our knowledge and experience, we have the conviction. Today if we talk about any future that is awaiting us, I am one of the persons who assume this responsibility and confront this challenge. I am ready everyday to retaliate to you and to the whole world through our statue quo and the upcoming threats and with greater conviction and trust: As I used to promise you victory, I promise you victory again, God willing.

Some tell us where do you get this confidence from? Allow me to use the courtesies of July War. We have this conviction first from our faith in Allah and our trust in Him. Second whoever has the people who are the most honorable people and fighters who are the men of Allah would never experience the sense of defeat. Whoever has a people like this people who are ready to offer sacrifices and steadily remain steadfast and present a legendary, civil and historic example as during July War and whoever has fighters with such a level of steadfastness, courage, wisdom, strength and will to offer sacrifices, why should he look with worry to the future?

But now all these threats were useless. They rather had a negative impact there. That means the psychological war which Israel created had a negative impact there. Barak and others have shown up and said that Hezbollah in Lebanon has become thrice as strong as it was in July. He is telling the world come and help us against Hezbollah. But still what is he saying to the people of the Israeli entity and to those dwelling in the north and other regions? Still more, when Barak says that as a result of the international community tolerance with Hezbollah, the party's rocket arsenal grew and Hezbollah now has the power not only to bomb Tel Aviv only but also any other spot in the Israeli entity. He is saying so. I have preceded him to that. True Barak is inciting the international community against us but what is he doing with his people? Beware there is a new war. Not only the residents of Haifa, Naharaya and Kiryat Shmouna will run away but all of you will run away.

In past few weeks, what pushed Netanyahu to withdraw the whole issue and say that was a media storm? You occupied the whole world for four weeks threatening. No one in Israel refrained from talking. Finally he said it was a media storm. Why? That's because settlers expressed resentment and tourists started to flee. As far as I know tourists did not flee from Lebanon but rather from northern Palestine. So the psychological war had negative impact on them and thus they could not carry on with it.
Anyway, if we remained as we are and confronted any psychological war, threat and intimidation with cooperation and solidarity as what took place during the past weeks, I believe none of these storms, uproar and political and media campaigns will be useful.

I move now to another topic related to the issue of war as war. It has nothing to do with threats which are saying that these threats are to prepare for an Israeli war on September 15th. Others are saying it will take place on the end of September. Well the timing differs in 15 days. Some people say the war will take place in November 2009. In our opinion, this is ruled out.

Well such talk remains general. There is a general atmosphere in the country and in the region which talks about an imminent Israeli war whether in 2010, 2011, 2012 or 2013. God knows. So some people suppose in principle that there is an imminent war and only Allah knows when it will take place. They give as a proof on the validity of this conviction various and diversified political evidences. I do not want to go into such analyses because I have no information to rely on. They are all analyses. I like to say that we as Lebanese are not to occupy ourselves with analyses. We have to wait and see the future. In principle the assumption of war on Lebanon is valid as a possibility regardless of time and timing. It might take place after 10, 20 or 30 years. Can anyone swear that a war against Lebanon will never take place? As Lebanese we are before two options regarding our responsibility as we will not limit ourselves to tackling analyses only.

The first option is to surrender and tell the Israelis what do you want? We are ready. We are at your service. Do whatever you want but do not wage a war on our country. This option has great negative impacts and dangers. The Israelis might say we want first the disarmament of the resistance. We do not want armed resistance in Lebanon. We will say. That's easy. Let's collect arms O Lebanese. If we collected arms we will be a week country which has nothing to defend itself with. But the Israelis are owners of a project in the region which they announced. Israel is a Jewish state. That means Palestinians living in territories occupied in 1948 will not be able to stay there and spoil the identity and color of the Jewish state. Second, we have settling the Palestinians in the countries where they are present. Third in the future we will reach a war crisis as their population is increasing. So they will demand water from us. Fourth we have the security commitments. There will be a fifth condition among an endless number of conditions.

So the first option is surrendering to the conditions, will and project of the enemy. And this is out of question.

The second option is not to make war. Not at all. The second option is to get ready and consolidate the factors of strength to prevent war from taking place. You might ask me: Are we able to prevent a war from taking place? I will give you the answer: Yes. There is a great possibility. If we cooperated as Lebanese we will be able to prevent Israel from waging a war on Lebanon. So the second option is that we work together to prevent the enemy from waging another war on Lebanon. But should the enemy wage a new war, will we win in it? This is another option. How may we make this other option? Can we prevent the enemy from waging a war on Lebanon yes? Can we prevent the enemy of thinking of waging a war against Lebanon? Yes. But we have to work. That is possible not in hopes but with working.

I will be content with mentioning three topics only.

First (And here we are talking about Lebanon and not about Hezbollah) Lebanon must have a deterrent military strength. When Lebanon becomes a strong country (Here comes the defense strategy) as an army, resistance and people and when we own a deterrent military power and capacity, then we will be telling the Israelis be careful. You want to wage an attack against Lebanon to achieve goals. You won't be able to achieve goals because we are not a weak country anymore. If we presented the Israelis with such logic, they will think fully million a million times. Hereof I am not with those who frighten people saying war is imminent. I tell you: It's not easy for any Israeli cabinet to take the decision of waging a war against Lebanon. That's not easy. They will think fully before taking such a decision. This is the truth. If the Israelis wanted to launch a war against Lebanon, what will their goal be? Indeed their goal will not be less than that of July 2003 War which they called Liquidation War or less than that of the Grapes of Wrath in 1996 or that of July 2006 aggressive war. The minimum goal which the Israelis would be seeking to restore their deterrence and prestige and impose their conditions and settlement with all the governments of the region is to eradicate the resistance in Lebanon. This is a goal which the Israelis might wage a war for achieving. The question now is for military and political experts and all the analysts and for you too so that the world won't carry on frightening us: Do the current Israeli army and cabinet have the power and capacity to wage a war to eradicate the resistance in Lebanon? Here I am telling you. Indeed they cannot. They have been working day and night for three years. It's weird that some still believe that Israel was not defeated. What a victorious undefeated army which has been exercising for three years day and night, changing leaderships and generals, arming, forming investigation committees, drawing lessons and moral! If they are doing all of that and they are victorious, what if they were defeated, what would have they done?

Israel has been working day and night to become strong and they can't but do that. It's just as Barak said in a statement some days ago when he went with Netanyahu to visit an air force base. It was clear that he said the government, political forces, the settlement, the conditions, negotiations and the political future of the state of Israel is all based on the force of that army. How did that army emerge from July War? How would it get engaged in a new war? Yes, if they exercised, get armed, staged maneuvers, put plans and drew conclusions and morals while on the other hand we wasted our time and were occupied with each other, then they can in a number of years possess the power to wage a new war against Lebanon, occupy Lebanon, impose their condition on Lebanon and conclude an agreement which is more humiliating that May 17t Accord. But if we seriously assumed responsibility, they won't be able to do that. If we worked day and night, made evaluations, drew lessons, benefited from July War lessons, discovered the points of strength we own as Lebanese and consolidated them and discovered the points of weakness and addressed them, if we put our combat school into effort, (Yes I can today with pride and glory talk about a military school that the Lebanese resistance presented to the world. We are more fit of implementing this school which we made with the blood of our martyrs and the minds of our fighters on top of whom is martyr leader Hajj Imad Moghneyih -May Allah bless his soul); if we worked industriously to be strong; if we were ready to confront the enemy in a way better than that of July War even on the human level too; if we in July War confronted the enemy with thousands, we are ready today to face them with tens of thousands. We can make this enemy comprehend that any new war on Lebanon will have new rules and equations. With my respect to the debate I heard from some Lebanese, when the Israelis talk for over a year about the Dahyieh doctrine or strategy and put a new strategy for the upcoming war based on new ideas and no one answers them after one day or two and one month or two, we have the right and we are concerned with making a response. Should anyone have answered them, we would not have answered them. If the Israelis are talking about a new equation in any upcoming war (And we do not want any upcoming war but we are not afraid of that. Perhaps they want a war but they are afraid of it. That's the difference) yes it's our right to let them know that in July War we told them if you bombed Beirut, we will bomb Tel Aviv. Today we are telling you: If you bombed Beirut or Dahyieh we will bomb Tel Aviv. When we make the enemy know very well that if you waged a war on southern Lebanon and imagined that you can bomb any other city or village in Lebanon here I am telling you: today we are ready to bomb any city or village all through the area of your usurping entity. Go then and stage internal maneuvers until you are fed up.

When the enemy also comes to comprehend as we did let them comprehend but we are reiterating that – as they are talking about a new war strategy that is not limited to aerial bombarding but also broad land operations and invasions: Develop your tank armors and train your brigades to invade our territories. Again I will tell you: They will be crushed in our towns, villages, valleys and hills. If we could make this power (and it is present but we have to consolidate it and let the enemy understand that) won't that deter Israel from launching a war against Lebanon? That indeed deters Israel and protects the country. I assert for you and I am not mentioning numbers and as I used to say in July War: In any new Israeli war there will be surprises God willing. When we say that to the Israelis we will be deterring and preventing them from waging a war. They will consider all possibilities fully before even thinking of waging a war against Lebanon. So let them go and search for other choices to confront us but not war.

The second thing which we could do together to prevent a war is having national solidarity and emerging from internal crises and tension. A national speech was delivered lately. That would be highly appreciated especially if heard from all the political leaders in Lebanon. This speech says that in case of any Israeli war against the resistance we will all be with the resistance and we will back it. If that would be the national logic in Lebanon, Israelis will wonder: Where are we going? They believe we are weak and they are thinking of isolating people and regions from one another. But if they find national solidarity they won't have the choice of war anymore.

A third factor which is a very helpful factor that can't be underestimated is the issue of spying nets. Why do the Israelis insist on air violations? They say we are making violations and that is untrue. But since July War until now 4000 Israeli violation have been recorded. Still the international security Council did not make a move. Neither did the UN. Still until now there is an Israeli violation in Shabaa Farms and nothing was done in that perspective. Lebanese Al Ghajar village is a Lebanese area and still nothing has been done in that perspective.

Why do Israelis still insist on keeping their airplanes in our skies? Indeed the case is not that he is obsessed by violating our sovereignty. No they dispatch their planes to gather information. Still all military men and experts know that the technical gathering of information through such planes is not enough. The enemy can't dispense with field spies in villages, towns and neighborhoods to gather information for him. The most important element that makes the Israelis rush into a war is having enough information. When his information is not enough he becomes hesitant. When his information becomes messed up he becomes lost and when he loses information he becomes blind. Who are his eyes? They are the spies.

Thus today and on behalf of the martyrs, I demand that security forces complete what they started. Don't stop with the elections. Come on and carry on revealing the agents and arresting them. What has been accomplished so far is very great and important but still it is not enough. There is no spy-free town, village and city in Lebanon. I am responsible of what I am saying because Israelis are gathering information from every village. If once the members belonging to every definite organization were counted to see which is the greatest organized party in Lebanon it will turn out to be the agents. I am responsible for what I am saying. So this mission must be completed.

Second the judiciary file must be carried on seriously also. We have heard days ago warning words about tolerance and leniency regarding collaborators. Here I am saying: Whoever is tolerant with agents is tolerant with the people's blood and fate and the fate of the nation. It is unacceptable that anyone be tolerant in this perspective. The state has been concerned in addressing this issue since 2000 and we have depended on it to do that. Do us a favor and carry on addressing this issue.

So if we strengthened ourselves and achieved national solidarity and a national unity government and carried on revealing the Israeli agents, we as Lebanese will deter the enemy from waging a new war against Lebanon. No matter how strong he grows, his war will flop in achieving any of its goals; and the repercussions of the upcoming war on the fate, existence and future of Israel in the region will be catastrophic. But should a war take place, there is Allah, the men of Allah and the most honorable people.

July 2006 war strongly foiled the most dangerous US-Israeli plot in our Arab and Islamic region. This project apparently possessed all the elements of strength to control and practice hegemony and to cancel all impeding element. In the past recent years, that project had the most forceful push to the front especially under the administration of George Bush. That project spread over Palestine, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Iran, and Afghanistan to cover the whole region. Today that project failed drastically. I won't be exaggerating if I said it is over now. Some parts of this project fell and came to an end. Since August 14, 2006, we haven’t heard anything about the new Middle East of Condolezza Rice. Yes, the US-Israeli project flopped drastically in Palestine thanks to the resistance and ultimately to its legendary steadfastness in Gaza; in Lebanon thanks to its resistance, its people and all who backed it and ultimately in its legendary steadfastness in July War; in Iraq also thanks to the Iraqi resistance that prevented the dreams of George Bush and the US administration of peacefully controlling Iraq but rather forced the Americans to leave towns even if through a political agreement. Such an agreement would not have taken place without the sacrifices of the resistance fighters. I would like to tell you that if all the bombs in Iraq and the suicide bombers and the military actions targeted the occupation troops and evaded the Iraqi people of various sects, they would have inflicted the US army with a rapid, historic and great defeat. I will tell you the US project will fail in Afghanistan thanks to the resistance, and in the opposition states on top of which is Iran and Syria this project also failed.

Today and at this very moment I tell you that our domestic, regional and international situation is better than our situation back in July 2006. If you asked how it is better I will put it in other words. The current domestic, regional and international situation is not worse than the situation back in 2006. We remained steadfast and gained victory. The resistance in Palestine remained steadfast and the enemy's project flopped. Today they are nurturing desperate hopes. There were hopes that Syria falls but Syria emerged strong. As for Iran, they thought that the continuous threats to hit Iran will make it retreat and succumb. In the past few weeks, some bet and even dreamt that the Islamic revolution will come to an end and the regime would fall in the Islamic republic of Iran. Their dreams were but a mirage. I assert to you that many around the world exaggerated the events that took place in Iran, but it emerged as a regime, state and people and with the bless of the existence of such a wise, courageous, kind and historic leader as His Eminence Imam Sayyed Khamenai (May Allah prolong his life span) and with the bless of the public presence over thirty years. Iran emerged from its crisis stronger and more powerful. Iran will remain as it is. So the resistance movements today possess a stronger faith, conviction and confidence in the future.

As I recall the souls of martyrs, the suffering of their families, the sufferings of the wounded, the displaced, those whose houses were demolished and those who offered sacrifices, I tell you with much love: O people of Lebanon1 O people of Palestine! O people of Iraq! O people of our region! O brothers and sisters! Our strength is in our unity, solidarity, resistance and firm will. The future is ours. We will make it with our hands, the blood of martyrs and our faith and conviction. This is the moral drawn from the historic divine victory of July War. With you and with our proud courageous and great people we will carry on our way to guard Lebanon - Lebanon of the cedars, Lebanon of the proud mountains, Lebanon of the proud foreheads, Lebanon of the steady might- against any threat and challenge and to make Lebanon a landmark for pride, honor and glory. Peace be upon you and Allah's mercy and blessing.

source: In Their Eyes