Hezbollah challenges Israel, claims readiness for prolonged war

A senior Hezbollah official has stated that Israel will fail to achieve victory in its ongoing conflict with the group, asserting that Hezbollah is equipped to endure a prolonged confrontation.

Lebanon’s National News Agency reported on a speech by Hezbollah’s media relations official, Muhammad Afif, who addressed Hezbollah fighters, suggesting that the group holds a pivotal position in determining the region’s future through its combat operations.

According to Afif, despite extensive Israeli efforts, including the deployment of five military divisions, two brigades, and a force of 65,000 soldiers over the past 45 days, Israeli forces have not managed to capture any Lebanese villages.

He credited Hezbollah’s resistance to its fighters’ deep knowledge of the land and their willingness to defend it, which he argues enables them to effectively counter Israel’s air superiority and offset the impact of strikes on civilian areas.

Afif further highlighted that Hezbollah’s formation in 1982 was a response to the Israeli occupation of Lebanese territories, emphasising that the group’s leadership and fighters are Lebanese, operating independently without external command.

He maintained that Hezbollah is well-supplied with the weapons and equipment needed for an extended conflict and is prepared for an intensified, long-term resistance against Israel.

Meanwhile, regional hostilities have continued to escalate. Syria’s Homs-Damascus highway was briefly blocked after an Israeli airstrike targeted an aid distribution centre for displaced Lebanese civilians near Homs, as reported by Syria’s state news agency Sana.

In northern Israel, emergency services responded to injuries caused by shrapnel, treating a 40-year-old woman who was wounded in Karmiel. The Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) also reported that around 50 projectiles were fired from Lebanon into Israel, some of which were intercepted while others reached Israeli territory.