Hezbollah chief meets Hamas officials in Beirut amid rising tension over Israeli raids on al-Aqsa Mosque
The secretary general of Lebanon’s Hezbollah resistance movement has met with a delegation of senior Hamas officials in Beirut, as tensions are simmering across the occupied Palestinian territories over Israeli forces violently storming the al-Aqsa Mosque compound and attacking Palestinian worshipers.
Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah met with notable decision-makers from the Gaza-based resistance movement, including Ismail Haniyeh, head of the political bureau of the group, Sheikh Saleh al-Arouri, deputy head of the Hamas’ political bureau, and top officials Khalil al-Hayya and Osama Hamdan, according to Palestinian media outlets.
During their meeting, Nasrallah and the Hamas officials reviewed the latest political and field developments in Palestine, Lebanon and the Middle East, especially the recent confrontations in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank and al-Quds.
Israeli minister of military affairs Yoav Gallant said earlier following a security meeting that the regime is ready on all fronts to wage a new war.
“All institutions are ready to face different options on all fronts, we know how to react to any threat,” Gallant said.
Hezbollah warns Israel over al-Aqsa Mosque raid
Nasrallah issued a warning on Thursday to Israel over the regime’s escalation at the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in the occupied Old City of al-Quds.
“The resistance front has a high number of long-range missiles in its arsenal; but it is not using them at the moment.
“One of the options that resistance fighters would take in case Zionists commit a folly would be the launch of a significant number of ballistic missiles at sensitive Israeli centers,” Nasrallah said.
Attacks on al-Aqsa Mosque our red line, al-Quds Brigades says
Al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad resistance movement, also condemned the latest Israeli forces’ raid against worshipers at the al-Aqsa Mosque during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, and said that the attack was a “red line” for all Palestinians.
Abu Hamza, a spokesman for the group, said the resistance front has in reality honored its pledge to defend al-Quds, will continue to confront the Zionist regime’s atrocities, and stresses that it will not hesitance to carry out retaliatory operations by any means.
Kata’ib Hezbollah, Ansarullah voice solidarity with Palestinians
Iraq’s anti-terror group Kata’ib Hezbollah and Yemeni Ansarullah resistance group have expressed solidarity with Palestinians in the wake of incursions and raids by Israeli forces.
“We express our full support for rocket barrages fired from southern Lebanon and the Gaza Strip at areas inside the Israeli-occupied territories in retaliation for the latest attack by Israel on the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in the Old City of al-Quds,” Kata’ib Hezbollah said in a statement.
“The rocket attacks represent a natural response to Zionists’ crimes against the al-Aqsa Mosque. The Zionist regime is under the delusion that its repeated desecration of the al-Aqsa Mosque compound and oppression of the Palestinian nation will go unpunished,” the statement also read.
Kata’ib Hezbollah then called upon all Muslims to stand up against the Israeli incursions and defend the al-Aqsa Mosque through all available means.
Ansarullah movement also stated that it will extend all forms of support to Palestinian resistance groups and Lebanon’s Hezbollah in case of a military confrontation with Israel over its violent raids on the al-Aqsa Mosque.
On Wednesday, Israeli forces raided the holy site for the second time in a row and tried to evacuate Palestinian worshipers by firing stun grenades and rubber bullets. Worshipers threw objects at the Israeli troops in response.
According to the Palestine Red Crescent Society, at least six people were injured in the fresh flare-up.
The UN, Iran, Turkey and several other countries and bodies have expressed shock and concern about Israeli forces’ incursions into the mosque.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was “shocked and appalled” by images of Israeli security forces beating people at the al-Aqsa Mosque, his spokesman said on Wednesday.
Stephane Dujarric said Guterres viewed images of the “violence and beating” within the holy site, and found it more distressing because it came “at a time of a calendar which is holy to Jews, Christians and Muslims that should be a time for peace and nonviolence.”
“Places of worship should only be used for peaceful religious observances,” he added.
