HEZBOLLAH’s terror chief has issued a chilling warning to Israel, stoking fears of all-out war in his first public address since the October 7 massacre.
Iran-backed militia leader Hassan Nasrallah said “all options are open” amid the ongoing brutal conflict as Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu hit back.
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Hezbollah leader Nasrallah described the October 7 attacks as a ‘sacred operation’Credit: Reuters
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Hezbollah supporters gathered to pay their respects to those killed in the battleCredit: Reuters
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Hezbollah is considered the largest and most powerful non-state military force in the worldCredit: AFP – Getty
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The Iran-backed group is estimated to have 150,000 rockets in its arsenal – including precision missilesCredit: AFP
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The Hezbollah chief, 63, praised the October 7 Hamas attack and called it a “holy operation” that was “100% Palestinian.”
He warned that the battle had spread to “more than one front”.
The terror chief said the deadly attacks a month ago sent an “earthquake” to Israel and exposed the country’s weakness.
Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected a temporary ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and issued a warning in response.
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Netanyahu said Israel continues with all its might and rejects a temporary ceasefire that does not include the return of our hostages.
He said, “I tell our enemies in the north not to test us, you will pay dearly.”
As Nasrallah prepared to deliver his televised speech, celebratory gunfire rang out over Beirut as thousands of people packed a square in the southern suburbs of the Lebanese capital to watch.
The Hezbollah leader thanked the “Iraqi and Yemeni hands that joined this battle” and celebrated the pro-Palestinian protests seen around the world.
Addressing the crowd, Nasrallah also filled the tanks with “martyrs” who died fighting in the conflict over the past few weeks.
The Hezbollah chief said one of Israel’s biggest mistakes is pursuing goals it cannot achieve.
“For a whole month, Israel has not been able to offer a single military achievement,” he said, before blaming the US for the ongoing war.
Nasrallah warned that attacking Lebanon would be the “stupidest mistake” amid growing fears of an all-out war in the Middle East.
He said: “If the enemy starts attacking any area of Lebanon, he would make the biggest, stupidest mistake.”
“I will say it quite transparently, from our side all options are open.
We have to be ready for all options.
Israel warned this morning that it “will respond to any incident along its northern border today and in the days to come.”
“We are on very, very high alert,” a military spokesman announced.
Yesterday, Hezbollah launched what appeared to be its biggest attack in four weeks as it targeted Israeli army positions in the country’s north with mortar fire and suicide drones.
Israel’s military said it retaliated with warplanes and helicopters – a clash that further fueled fears the conflict could escalate into an all-out war across the Middle East.
Since Hamas unleashed hell on Israel on October 7, Hezbollah has been involved in daily clashes on the border with Israel, with deaths reported on both sides.
It appears to be a calculated tactic to keep the Israeli army busy on the northern border – but so far the group has given up trying to start a real war.
Last month, Israel ordered the evacuation of civilians in 28 areas amid fears that an Islamic militia group was on the verge of an invasion.
Today, these worries are closer than ever.
Hezbollah has a frighteningly strong military and political grip on Lebanon – and has already waged a devastating war against Israel in 2006 that claimed 1,200 lives.
It is one of the most armed, non-state groups in the world and is the most feared of Iran’s allies in its self-styled “Axis of Resistance.”
Jerusalem has long seen the Shiite Islamist group as a greater threat than Hamas thanks to its far more advanced weaponry, including precision and long-range missiles.
Hezbollah is estimated to have a stockpile of 150,000 rockets and an army of 60,000 highly trained, battle-hardened soldiers following their brutal campaign in Syria to help prop up the regime of tyrant Bashar al-Assad.
Experts believe it possesses hundreds of precision-guided rockets that have a range of up to 260 miles and could hit any part of Israel.
Its vast arsenal is also believed to contain anti-tank, anti-aircraft and anti-ship missiles, as well as dozens of different models of Syrian tanks.
And as the threat grows on Israel’s northern border, The Sun spoke exclusively to an Israeli military official who warned that a “real war” would be fought between Hezbollah and Israel.
“There will be a real war here. The war in Gaza ended after two days, but that was nothing compared to what could happen here,” he said.
“This will be different and will last much longer. Hezbollah is a real army, much bigger than Hamas, better trained and better equipped.”
It comes as…
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Smoke and flames rise after an Israeli airstrike in the Gaza Strip on ThursdayCredit: Getty
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The Israeli army is shown firing near the border with LebanonCredit: EPA
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Wounded civilians after Israeli airstrikes on GazaCredit: Getty
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A woman and children, all injured, try to get to safety amid the destruction and chaos Credit: Getty
Meanwhile, US intelligence sources claimed that Wagner’s group could ally with Hezbollah and open a “second front” in Israel’s war.
Officials said brutal Russian mercenaries planned to provide the terrorist group with an air defense system, The Wall Street Journal reported.
The terror chief’s expected speech comes as the Israel Defense Forces claim to have completed the “encirclement” of Gaza City as they go head-to-head in the battle to eliminate Hamas.
The Israeli military added that it had reached a “significant stage in the war” as its troops advanced on three fronts.
On Thursday, tanks massed near the coast in the north, reinforcements moved to the northeast, and armored troops advanced toward the sea in the south.
The same day, Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu rejected all calls for a ceasefire and declared: “We are moving north.
“Nothing will stop us”.
Click here to listen to episode 4 of The Sun podcast ‘Israel’s War on Terror’. This week, an Israeli intelligence expert tells us why Hamas’s hostage-taking could turn out to be its undoing.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Israel today to press for more aid to be allowed into Gaza amid growing fears of an unfolding humanitarian crisis.
Inside Gaza, the Hamas-run health ministry claims more than 9,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli bombardment of the besieged enclave.
This includes more than 3,700 Palestinian children killed so far in 25 days of fighting,
The UN estimates that 2.3 million people have been driven from their bomb-hit homes.
Food, water and fuel are disappearing under a total Israeli siege, and overcrowded hospitals warn they are on the verge of collapse.
Casualties on both sides are expected to rise dramatically as Israeli troops advance toward densely populated neighborhoods in Gaza City.
Israel has warned residents to immediately evacuate the Shati refugee camp, which borders the center of Gaza City.
Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are still en route to fighting in northern Gaza and have crowded into UN facilities.
The United Nations said yesterday that 20 people were killed after a school-turned-shelter was damaged in a second attack on the Jabalia refugee camp in Gaza on Thursday.
Meanwhile, the Rafah crossing is due to open today as almost a hundred Britons trapped in Gaza have been cleared to cross into Egypt.
The in-laws of Scotland’s First Minister Humza Yousaf are among the 92 Britons allowed to leave.
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Anthony Blinken arrived in Israel today to push humanitarian aid to GazaCredit: AP
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People search buildings destroyed during Israeli airstrikes in the southern Gaza Strip todayCredit: Getty
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Israel is on the offensive with its ground operations inside GazaCredit: AP
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IDF goes head-to-head with Hamas terroristsCredit: AP
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