Hassan Nasrallah during his televised speech on June 9. (Credit: screenshot from televised speech)
BEIRUT — Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah said Tuesday that war with Israel is “not inevitable,” following recent repeated threats of war from Hezbollah and Israel at a time when the dispute over the delineation of the maritime border between both countries is in full swing following the arrival of a floating unit in the Karish field.
Here’s what we know:
• “The resistance has a historic opportunity to save Lebanon,” Nasrallah said, according to remarks reported Wednesday by the daily al-Akhbar, which has close ties to Hezbollah. “There will be no extraction of hydrocarbons from Israel’s part if Lebanon does not get its rights to it,” he also warned.
• Last week, Hezbollah's chief warned that the three unarmed drones sent by his party towards the offshore Karish gas field early July “are only a modest start,” threatening Israel with war. Nasrallah added that his party is “militarily and financially capable of preventing [Israel] from extracting [gas] from the disputed Karish field and all [Israel’s] measures will not be capable of protecting its floating platform.”
• But Nasrallah said Tuesday that Hezbollah is “not sure [Lebanon] is heading for war,” adding that the country “could be subjected to a targeted assault,” which might lead to war but said that depends on Israel starting the assault.
• The head of the American Task Force for Lebanon and former US Ambassador to Morocco Edward Gabriel on Wednesday said that there is an “opportunity” to settle the maritime border dispute between Lebanon and Israel but warned that eventually “the window of opportunity would close.”