Alwaght-Hezbollah Resistance Movement Leader Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah says the Saudi and Israeli regimes aim to instigate "strife" between Shiite and Sunni Muslims in the West Asia region.
Sayyed Nasrallah made the remarks on Tuesday in a televised speech on Tuesday aired by Al Manar TV in which he analyzed the latest developments specifically after the Saudi escalation and threats against Lebanon.
The Hezbollah Secretary General pointed out that "since Saudi Arabia announced about halting its supposed financial assistance to the Lebanese Army, a wide political and media campaign in Lebanon and the region took off, and there was clear escalation in stances by the Saudi regime, some Persian Gulf states, and Lebanese factions. This escalation resulted in a tense atmosphere in Lebanon on the political, media, and public levels which spread fear among the Lebanese inside and outside Lebanon."
Regarding the street protests Lebanon witnessed over the weekend denouncing a comedy skit mocking Nasrallah, the Hezbollah chief urged his supporters not to block roads or take to the streets unless the party issues an official call. The comedy skit, aired on Saudi-owned MBC, was an attempt to ignite sectarian strife in Lebanon, Nasrallah said.
"Who are we affecting when we cut off roads? We are affecting our own people and causing inconvenience in their neighborhoods, and I ask you to act in a civilized manner next time you hear or see something," he said.
The acts carried out by young men were merely spontaneous and further raised fears of a possible outbreak of Sunni-Shiite violence. "These acts benefit our enemies and rivals," he added.
He completely denied rumors that Hezbollah was preparing for an armed confrontation with anyone, saying statements from unknown sources were spreading fears and lies within the Sunni community to exacerbate the tense situation in the country.
Rumors were spread on social media last week that Hezbollah was preparing to invade Beirut's Tariq al-Jadideh neighborhood, a majority Sunni area, and other Sunni areas and Palestinian refugee camps.
We must seek effective and studied responses that would serve our goals rather than the enemy's goals... the Israeli regime, the Saudi regime, and some others want a Sunni- Shiite conflict in Lebanon. Are we supposed to serve them? Saudi Arabia's execution of prominent Shiite Muslim cleric Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr in January aimed to ignite inter-Muslim conflict, he added.
The Hezbollah chief pointed out that "in some places offensive slogans were raised against senior Muslim figures and this major mistake that the Supreme Leader Imam Ali Khamenei clearly prohibited."
Sayyed Nasrallah referred to the important role that social media plays today, indicating that "couple of days ago Israel said that there was an Israeli team following the social media pages... we must be aware of the street as well as the social media, and no one should underestimate this field for even the countries that created it are aware of its dangers..."
On the latest developments regarding the Saudi regime, Sayyed Nasrallah rejected accusations that Riyadh's decision to halt $4 billion in military aid was motivated by positions taken by Hezbollah or Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil, a party ally. Sayyed Nasrallah pointed out that the assistance that the kingdom decided to grant the Lebanese Army was halted after the death of King Abdullah and not because of Hezbollah's latest stances as claimed.
“But now since there was a problem with Hezbollah, the Saudi publicly announced its one year old decision and blamed the resistance for it,” he said. Hezbollah and Bassil, the head of the Free Patriotic Movement, were merely scapegoats in Riyadh's strategy to silence dissenters, he added. Sayyed Nasrallah said if Saudi Arabia had a problem with Hezbollah, it should take it up with the party itself, and not target Lebanon, its people, army and Hezbollah's allies.
The Hezbollah leader noted that this situation will continue as some in March 14 political faction in Lebanon, "are hoping for a Lebanese "Decisive Storm", as if the "Decisive Storm” on Yemen attained any victory." Decisive Storm is the code name of the one year Saudi-led military aggression on Yemen
Sayyed Nasrallah further reassured that "claims that Hezbollah controls the Lebanese government are a joke as some parties are more influential in government’s decisions making."
Hezbollah secretary general considered that "the Saudi regime has been furious about Hezbollah since 2005 and we kept silent... the explosives laden cars that were sent to some Lebanese regions were brought by the Saudis... All the wars that the Saudi regime waged in the region were indirect, with the only direct war being in Yemen.” He said Hezbollah cannot keep silent on all the crimes being committed by the Saudi regime in Yemen.
He also denounced the Arab world’s silence in the face of Riyadh’s aggression on Yemen, where over 8,000 people have lost their lives since the Saudi onslaught began in late March last year.
"I am now 57, and I say this with all honesty... The greatest thing I've ever done in my life was speak out on the second day of the Saudi war in Yemen, as I am doing now," he said."Even U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon spoke out against the massacres being committed by the Saudi regime in Yemen."
“Yemeni people are so oppressed even more than the Palestinian people. There is no oppression today like the one in Yemen," Sayyed Nasrallah stated.
He stressed that if he kept silent on the Saudi war on Yemen that would imply giving legitimacy for waging any war in the Arab and Islamic world.
Sayyed Nasrallah also held Saudi Arabia directly responsible for some of the car bombs that have targeted Lebanon, Syria and Iraq since 2003.
He criticized his political rivals who back the Saudi regime, warning them that whatever aggressive actions Saudi Arabia takes in Yemen, Bahrain or Iraq would also be taken in Lebanon.
The Hezbollah chief revealed that the "Saudi regime had tried to pressure us to keep silent but it failed. Today it is trying to pressure us through the Lebanese people, and their problem is not the war in Syria or any other place, but it is our boldness in speaking against the king and the regime which very few dare to oppose."
