'The threats of war have greatly decreased' but still come up: Nasrallah

BEIRUT— "The threats" of a wider war in Lebanon have "declined greatly," but still come up "from time to time," Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said in his speech on Tuesday night ahead of the Shiite Muslim commemoration of Ashura.

Hezbollah's deputy leader, Naim Qassem, had already stated on Friday that there would be "no wider war" in Lebanon soon but affirmed the party's readiness "for all eventualities."

Since October, Hezbollah has traded almost daily cross-border fire from Lebanon with the Israeli army in support of its Palestinian ally Hamas, with Israel targeting operatives from the group in both Lebanon and Syria.

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"Like before, there may be a lot of political pressure on Lebanon in the coming stage, on the state in Lebanon, on the resistance in Lebanon. The probability of war, of course, has recently declined to a very large degree, but it still comes up from time to time," Nasrallah said.

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, visiting the Israeli military post on Mount Hermon on Sunday, said a cease-fire in Gaza would not automatically apply to the front with Hezbollah.

"Even if we reach a deal for a hostage agreement, it does not obligate what is happening here, unless Hezbollah agrees," Gallant told soldiers stationed there, as cited by Israeli media. 

"Let the enemy be certain that what the resistance began in Lebanon on Oct. 8 following the battle of al-Aqsa Flood, and what it has provided for it until today in terms of hundreds of martyrs, large numbers of wounded, and large numbers of demolished homes... We will continue on this path until we reach the goal we aspire to in Lebanon, in Palestine, in the region, on all support fronts, no matter the dangers, challenges, and threats... We cannot retreat from our position, our fight, or our steadfastness in this battle."

Meanwhile, Nasrallah called for more solidarity for Gaza and criticized the "thousands of billions" of "Muslim" money, "Where is it being spent today? Where was it spent yesterday when two million Muslims in Gaza were dying of hunger? Why are all these planes, tanks, weapons and cannons being hoarded? For who? This huge number, this great space, this huge potential, for whom?"

In his Tuesday speech, Nasrallah did not delve much into political topics but said that he would do so on Wednesday in his speech commemorating Hezbollah Commander Muhammad Nimah Nasser, who was killed in an Israeli strike six days ago.