Hezbollah Secretary-General Sheikh Naim Qassem giving a speech on Sept. 20, 2026. Screenshot from Al-Manar.
Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem called for “resistance” against Israel during a speech Saturday, notably urging the “liberation of Palestine.” In his first address since Israel destroyed Hezbollah tunnels beneath the Ali Taher ridge more than a week ago, and after a notable period of silence, the Hezbollah leader spoke without mentioning the ongoing Israeli attacks on south Lebanon.
While saying that confronting Israel “can only occur through resistance,” he quickly clarified that resistance extends beyond armed struggle. “Resistance in all its forms, military, cultural and political, is necessary,” he said.
As Israel occupies more than 600 square kilometers of south Lebanon's territory and continues to demolish towns and villages, Qassem said that the “resilience of the resistance is tantamount to preventing the enemy from achieving its objectives.”
“Even if it lasts for us for days or months, we are victorious in Iran and in Lebanon because we have stood firm and prevented them from reaching their goals, namely our annihilation,” he added.
According to Qassem, “the alternative to resistance is capitulation, colonization and enslavement.”
Quoting former Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah, killed by an Israeli strike on Sept. 27, 2024, in Beirut’s southern suburbs, Qassem said that “resistance is the only path to liberate the land,” while “other means are a waste of time.”
“We have experienced this resistance in Lebanon and observed that it liberates the land and people, forces the Israeli enemy to leave in humiliation, and restores vitality and capacity to the Palestinian cause,” he added, referring in particular to Israel’s unilateral withdrawal from south Lebanon in 2000.
Qassem also recalled remarks by Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who was killed Feb. 28 by Israeli-American strikes on Tehran, emphasizing the need to “preserve the authentic path of Islam.”
“Gradually, flaws will inevitably appear, and the enemy will eventually collapse materially,” he said, without elaborating.
Despite regular criticism of the Lebanese government from Hezbollah MPs, the party did not withdraw its confidence during Wednesday’s parliamentary vote following the general policy debate. Hezbollah nevertheless signaled its displeasure by withdrawing its MPs from the chamber during the vote.
Qassem made no mention of domestic politics in his speech.
