The Secretary-General of Hezbollah, Naim Qassem, on August 15, 2025. Al-Manar/REUTERS
The particularly threatening language used for the first time by Naim Qassem in his speech on Friday suggested that Hezbollah firmly set its course in response to government efforts to disarm it, or in other words, end the anomaly represented by the party in Lebanon’s political landscape. For many commentators, the equation is now clear: either the retention of arms or war. But is that certain?At this stage, it's difficult to answer definitively, given the many and complex variables involved. One thing is certain: Qassem sought to capitalize on the momentum created by the visit to Beirut of one of Iran’s most prominent officials, Ali Larijani, who came to salvage what he could from the still-smoldering ruins of his empire, to make a “big impact.” Qassem aimed to achieve two goals: undermining the morale of Hezbollah's opposition...
The particularly threatening language used for the first time by Naim Qassem in his speech on Friday suggested that Hezbollah firmly set its course in response to government efforts to disarm it, or in other words, end the anomaly represented by the party in Lebanon’s political landscape. For many commentators, the equation is now clear: either the retention of arms or war. But is that certain?At this stage, it's difficult to answer definitively, given the many and complex variables involved. One thing is certain: Qassem sought to capitalize on the momentum created by the visit to Beirut of one of Iran’s most prominent officials, Ali Larijani, who came to salvage what he could from the still-smoldering ruins of his empire, to make a “big impact.” Qassem aimed to achieve two goals: undermining the morale of Hezbollah's...
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