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HEZBOLLAH’S new terror chief has threatened to kill Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu in his first national address as leader.
An ageing Naim Qassem made the twisted comments days after the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) labelled his appointment as only “temporary”.
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Reuters
Israeli PM Netanyahu’s home was targeted in a drone attackAP
The 71-year-old terror boss is believed to now be next on Israel’s hit-list after a string of targeted assassinations on Hezbollah’s top brass.
In his speech, Qassem spoke on the chilling drone attack launched by Hezbollah which directly hit Netanyahu’s seaside residence in Israel.
Qassem said: “The enemy must know that its bombing of our villages and cities will not make us retreat, and the resistance is strong and was able to deliver a drone to Netanyahu’s room.”
Netanyahu, 74 and his wife Sara, 65, were unharmed in the strike as they were not at home but the PM did vow to get revenge.
A menacing Qassem then gave a sinister prediction saying: “Netanyahu survived this time, but perhaps his time has not yet come.
“Our diplomatic contacts confirmed to us that Netanyahu is very afraid because we are targeting him.”
He also urged his regime’s supporters inside Lebanon to have “a little more patience”.
Qassem, the former deputy leader, has replaced Hassan Nasrallah – who was killed by Israel last month in massive airstrikes on Beirut.
He takes the reins as Hezbollah is defending against an Israeli invasion in the south of Lebanon.
Referencing Nasrallah, Qassem said: “Those who killed our secretary-general (Nasrallah) wanted to defeat the spirit of resistance within us and shatter the will of jihad.
“But his blood will continue to boil in our veins and will increase our determination to continue on this path.”
Unlike Nasrallah, who ruled Hezbollah for three decades, Qassem’s leadership is set to be short lived if Israel get their way.
His accession to the top of Hezbollah will make him the chief target for ruthlessly efficient Israeli assassins who have already killed dozens of terror chiefs in Lebanon and Gaza.
Israel’s Defence Minister Yoav Gollant sent a chilling threat in Hebrew on X when he was appointed saying: “The appointment is temporary. The countdown has begun.”
It comes as Israel has announced plans to roll out a £413m laser interceptor known as the Iron Beam that downs rockets and drones with light.
The system is set to be operational in a year’s time and will protect the country from different types of weapons sent through the air.
The move comes after fighting in Lebanon with Hezbollah and other Iranian proxies has ramped up in recent months.
Daily airstrikes by both sides have seen thousands killed across the border with neither group willing to accept terms for a ceasefire.
AP
AP
EPALebanon’s health ministry say 2,792 people have been killed since October 8, 2023.
On Tuesday, many civilians were killed in Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon.
At least 10 deaths were recorded in Sarafand – including woman and children, according to the town’s mayor.
Rescue workers were also sent rushing to the coastal city of Sidon to clear rubble after bombs were dropped across the residential area.
Five people were killed and another 33 injured, according to the country’s health ministry.
Israel gave no warning for the strikes but say were targeting a Hezbollah complex called Sayyed Shohada.
Israel’s military has vowed to eliminate all terrorist infrastructure in the country to ensure Hezbollah can never recover.
They have issued evacuation orders for around 16 villages in south Lebanon this week already.
Inside Iran-backed terror group Hezbollah
By Oliver Harvey, Chief Feature Writer
MORTAL enemies Hezbollah and Israel are in open warfare, risking a deadly wider conflict in the troubled region.
After decades of bloodshed, the powerful and well-armed Islamist militia has tentacles stretching across the globe.
With Iran’s ayatollah as its puppet master, Hezbollah says it has 100,000 fanatical fighters at its call.
Analysts estimate it has as many as 500,000 rockets and missiles trained on Israel.
Military expert Professor Michael Clarke said: “Hezbollah are a formidable force. They’re very well equipped. They’ve got more tunnels than Hamas had.
“The tunnels in Lebanon are burrowed out of rock, and hard to destroy. They have around half a million projectiles that they can fire at Israel.
“If they chose to fire off great salvos of these things, a thousand or so at a time, three or four times a day, they are likely to overwhelm Israeli air defences.”
Hezbollah first made their name as a terrorist outfit in 1982 when Israel invaded its northern neighbour Lebanon to root out the Palestine Liberation Organization.
In the bloody fighting, Israel occupied the south of the country and Shia Muslim militias took up arms against the invaders.
Seeing an opportunity to extend its influence, Iran provided funding and training to the group which became known as Hezbollah — meaning Party Of God.
Hell-bent on destroying Israel, it was soon wreaking havoc.
In 1983, it launched a suicide bombing of barracks in the Lebanese capital Beirut, housing US and French troops, leaving more than 300 dead.
The same year, another Hezbollah terrorist drove a van packed with explosives into the compound of the US Embassy in Beirut, killing 63.
The terror group — which is also a political party providing education and health care — developed a taste for kidnapping, too.
Then in 2006, a separate full-blown war was triggered by a deadly cross-border raid by Hezbollah.
It was supposed to be a pushover for Israel’s well-trained regular armed forces against a guerilla army.
But as the Israeli tanks rolled into Lebanon they were quickly met with firm resistance.
Hezbollah had tunnelled deep into Lebanon’s craggy hillsides and built well- fortified positions amid its towns and villages.
Rather than the ragtag irregulars the Israelis expected, they faced highly trained and well-armed troops with night-vision goggles and sophisticated communications.
AFP
English (US)