War of nerves: Israel begs Hezbollah to retaliate

Tuesday, 8 September 2020

War of nerves: Israel begs Hezbollah to retaliate

Date: 6 September 2020

Nasrallah vows to kill an enemy soldier, Israel’s northern border is paralyzed and Zionist propaganda keeps shaping news reports.

By Sayed Hasan from Resistance News Unfiltered

By Sayed Hasan

As we explained in our article What happened —and didn’t happen— at the Israel-Lebanon border?, Israel has been on high alert at its northern border since its July 20 strike in Damascus that killed a Hezbollah fighter. Three similar experiences have proven, in 2014, 2015 and 2019, that a bloody retaliation is inevitable, and fear has paralyzed northern occupied Palestine for more than a month. But the excruciating pressure of waiting is so unbearable on the Israeli side —it has already claimed the life of a soldier when his vehicle overturned near the Lebanese border, probably due to panic— that after trying to neutralize Hezbollah’s response by a pitiful letter of apology and then by a ridiculous sham on July 27, claiming to have repelled an imaginary infiltration attempt, the Hebrew state has committed a third action even more stupid —and fraught with consequences— by replaying the scenario of the phantom attack and by carrying out defensive strikes (illuminating shells & smoke bombs) against southern Lebanon on the night of August 25 to 26.

Apart from forest fires which broke out near a Lebanese army position and a UNIFIL position, and very slight damage to an agricultural building and two houses, caused by smoke-producing phosphorus shells & illuminating shells, no loss is to be reported. All in all, it was a pretty harmless show, although very anxiety-provoking for civilians on both sides of the border, and it is certainly no accident that no casualties or serious damage are to be deplored: Israel fears Hezbollah more than anything, and rightly considers the Party of God (with Iran) as an existential threat. Far from constituting an act of force on Israel’s part, this defensive attack is an act caused by the considerable pressure weighing on its soldiers at the northern border, and is explained either by a hallucination caused by fear (Netanyahu himself was then near the northern border and announced it to the media, adding to the IDF’s nervousness), or by an insistent request meant to push Hezbollah to retaliate and thus end this unbearable tension. Israel’s nerves are visibly cracking.

However, once again, our mainstream (and even alternative) media were quick to pick up on the IDF statement that in response to (purely imaginary) gunfire (Hezbollah isn’t going to retaliate with light weaponry), Israel reportedly carried out strikes against Hezbollah positions. The docile peddling of this lie illustrates the West’s blind adherence to IDF fables, when even the Israeli press and public opinion constantly question them and trust Nasrallah more than their own leaders. Submission, ignorance, sensationalism and / or hidden hostility to the Islamic Resistance in Lebanon, presented as powerless in the face of attacks from an enemy who would only target the positions of the Party of God in self-defense (when in reality he is the aggressor and endangered civilian homes and positions of the Lebanese army and the UN), explain this familiar propaganda after every actual or supposed incident.

These mini-reports from Al-Manar (1, 2 and 3), a Hezbollah TV channel which regularly translates the Hebrew media (unlike our media who do not even read the Israeli press in English, far more reliable than the Western news agencies despite heavy military censorship), explain in detail what happened, and show that there is a great deal of fear and frustration on the Israeli side: the IDF is extremely nervous, convinced that Hezbollah fighters are in ambush along the border and will seize the first opportunity to kill Israeli soldiers, and the settlers are anguished and revolted at the confused statements of the military and the restrictions placed on them.

Here are some eloquent quotes of these reports, all taken from Israeli analysts speaking on national TV channels:

We saw what happened in the Shebaa farms [on July 27], and we thought it was all behind us, but now we see what happened tonight, which is only the latest development. Perhaps Hezbollah will have the pleasure of forcing the IDF to remain on such a high level of alert along the border. Maybe they want to disrupt the life of Israelis in the region.
The Northern Command’s analysis is that Nasrallah will not give up on killing an Israeli soldier, and that he is determined to uphold the “eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth” equation against Israel. Since a Hezbollah fighter has been killed, he will kill an Israeli soldier in retaliation.
Ultimately, the military believes that Hezbollah has not settled its scores with Israel, and that it will carry out attacks against the Israeli military. That’s why the Northern Command has decided to stay on high alert, as Hezbollah’s attempts to strike soldiers will not stop.
Hezbollah cells are positioned along the border, and when a target presents itself they will open fire and kill an Israeli soldier in retaliation for the death of a Hezbollah fighter in Syria.

Hezbollah’s threats are therefore taken with the utmost seriousness in Israel, and whatever the complicit media may say, fear is clearly on the Israeli side, while the Lebanese Resistance relishes at the protracted torment of the occupier.

Hezbollah reacted laconically to this new incident, not even issuing a statement this time around. In a speech dedicated to the annual commemoration of the martyrdom of Imam Hussein on August 26, Nasrallah made a very brief comment about it, without dwelling on it:

I have to start with a very brief statement about what happened last night in the south on Lebanon’s border with occupied Palestine, all this Israeli commotion, the firing of flares and phosphorus grenades, as well as certain attacks. This is something important, sensitive and dangerous as far as we are concerned, but in a deliberate way I will not speak about it, I will not comment on it now, and I will leave this topic for later, at the auspicious time with the grace of God, soon and at the right time.

This sobriety is the complete opposite of an evasion: Nasrallah wishes to leave Israel on tenterhooks. As the grand master of psychological warfare he is, Nasrallah knows well that silence and expectation of retribution are worse than threats & inescapable retaliation that Israel ardently calls for in order to regain a semblance of serenity along its northern borders. Retaliation will indeed come, and it will certainly be deadly. It will avenge the death of the martyr Ali Kamal Mohsen killed in Damascus, as well as the violations of Lebanese sovereignty and the attacks against civilians during the Israeli strikes-for-show on July 27 and August 26, as promised by Hezbollah. Far from proving that Hezbollah would be hesitant and fearful, the fact that the response is slow to arrive adds long anxiety to the ultimate severity of the punishment: every Israeli soldier in the north constantly fears for his life, and will be relieved when this round is over, even at the cost of the death of one or more of his comrades —provided it is not him. Moreover, this expectation is also explained by the drastic security measures taken to avoid exposing the Israeli forces at the north (entire barracks abandoned, settlements evacuated, patrols and maneuvers canceled, soldiers forced to wear civilian clothes constantly, roads closed, etc.). It is certainly no coincidence that abandoned Israeli tanks were found by hikers in the Syrian Golan: it is probably a target offered to Hezbollah, as was already the case during the last confrontation of this type, unless the soldiers really deserted their posts.

Let us also remember that one year ago precisely, when two Hezbollah fighters were killed by Israel in Syria at the end of August 2019, Hezbollah’s retaliation happened 8 days later: on September 1, the Lebanese Resistance destroyed a moving Israeli military vehicle.

Netanyahu then claimed that there was not even a scratch on the Israeli side, and that the helicopter transport of a soldier covered in blood and carried on a stretcher was only a masquerade intended to deceive Hezbollah and avoid more strikes. A dubious claim which, even if true, would manifest incredible cowardice. It should be noted that at the same place and at the same time, an Israeli soldier was seriously injured by a childish game of stone-throwing (apparently more dangerous than two anti-tank missiles), at least according to the docile Israeli media submitted to strict military censorship. Let everyone draw their own conclusions about what really happened and who won this confrontation.

In any case, this experience may explain why Hezbollah’s response is yet to come. In order not to be fooled by a new Hollywood show, Hezbollah must wait for a target that is unmistakenly real, and such that no one can doubt that Israeli soldiers will have been killed by Hezbollah (and not by stones or other stupid and implausible games). Because Israel’s desperation is such that it goes as far as to bait Hezbollah with robots dressed as soldiers, and fakely protected by tanks and smoke bombs.

Moreover and above all, after putting all of northern Israel to a standstill for a whole week last year, Hezbollah now wants to make the fun last, and push Israel to the limit so that it humiliates itself more, and see how much longer the Zionist entity can remain on high alert before breaking down. Once again, the expectation of retribution is worse than the retribution itself, especially for first-class cowards like the IDF. Let us recall these two quotes reported in our previous article:

As a Koweiti put it on Twitter, “Hezbollah’s silence is sometimes more powerful and painful to the Zionist enemy than their missiles, because they live hours, days and weeks in a state of fear, terror and high nervousness. Silence is a destructive weapon of psychological warfare against the Israeli entity, both at the political and psychological levels.” Avigdor Lieberman, former Israeli Defense Minister, stated that “I am still worried because the North is paralyzed by the killing of one single Hezbollah member in Damascus. Unfortunately, Nasrallah proved that he does what he says, an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.”

On July 27, the Israeli press questioned the reality of the alleged Hezbollah incursion, asking explicitly if it was not a new show intended for Hezbollah (cf. Jerusalem Post, Was Mount Dov incident another Hollywood show for Hezbollah?). This time around, the Lebanese Resistance’s response must undoubtedly kill Israeli soldiers, and that is sure to happen. Nasrallah said this very clearly during his last speech on the 10th day of Muharram (August 30th), commemorating Imam Hussein’s martyrdom:

I have left the issue of the situation at the border between Lebanon and occupied Palestine for the end, and I will speak with great clarity, because it is necessary that things be very clear for everyone as to our stance.

Several weeks ago, during Israeli strikes near Damascus airport, martyrs fell, including our martyred brother combatant Hajj Ali Kamal Mohsen. We are firmly committed to the (deterrence) equation, and we have always enforced and upheld it. Our goal is not revenge. Our goal is to chastise the murderers, and uphold the balance of deterrence in order to protect (ourselves). This (is the equation) in effect since 2006.

Without our needing to make any statement (promising retaliation), after our mere statement reporting the martyrdom of our brother Ali Kamal Mohsein following an Israeli raid on Damascus airport, this single statement, without any additional word, was enough for Israel, which knows well (that our response was inevitable), (to go on maximum alert). And this is one of the successes of the Resistance. This Israel (which has always) behaved with arrogance, hybris and tyranny against entire regimes and entire armies, see how it behaves with the Resistance: it behaves in a very different way. This result was not achieved by declarations and speeches, but by our history, thanks to 38 years of sacrifice, jihad, endurance, achievements and victories on our side, and, on the Israeli side, (38 years old) of military and security setbacks, failures and defeats (against Hezbollah).

On its own initiative, as I said, Israel stood on a leg and a half (ready to flee) on the entire length of the border, from the sea to the Golan Heights. Not only on the Lebanese border, but also on the Syrian border with occupied Palestine. And they took all the (security) measures that you know: they evacuated their military positions —some positions are completely empty, and others still have personnel but the soldiers remain invisible—, they have completely canceled their patrols —sometimes a quick patrol can be carried out exceptionally when they feel that the Resistance is absent from a place—, and they have started sending us unmanned vehicles —because they have automatically piloted vehicles— in which they place dummies dressed in Israeli soldiers’ uniforms, as they did the last time, urging us to hit those vehicles; after that they are ready to bring in a helicopter, medical relief, put (these dummies) on stretchers and into the helicopter, thus making fun of us by having us believe that we got what we wanted, namely to kill one or two (Israeli) soldiers. Isn’t it? This is what they are doing. And yesterday you saw on the TV stations that they were sending us moving robots, putting a dummy in a soldier’s clothes on it, so that we would think it was a (real) soldier and hit that target. These measures have persisted for weeks.

Dummy dressed as an Israeli soldier and carried by a robot a few meters away from the Lebanese border, in order to lure Hezbollah, August 23rd

It is all part of the punishment. This army, which believes itself to be the most powerful in the region, when it faces the Resistance in Lebanon, yes, I can tell you that it stands on a leg and a half. And this along the entire length of the border. And fear is on the other side. They take action not only at the border, but behind the border, limiting movement to and within settlements, imposing (heavy) restrictions, etc. Training and maneuvers have been canceled until further notice. They brought in artillery and forces (to the north), and put their Iron Dome system on high alert. All this while waiting for (the inevitable retaliation of) the Resistance. Because they know that this Resistance is credible and serious.

And whatever is going on at the border, as we said in our statement, Israeli soldiers are afraid of their own shadow. If they have the impression that at any point on the border there is movement, they start to strike around their positions in the Shebaa farms, around their positions in al-Manara, near Mays-al- Jabal, Aït Aroun, etc., as well as in the western region. All of this expresses anguish, fear and terror on the Israeli side. Because why would they strike all these positions? If they have (accurate) information, if they have control over what’s going on, they need to be alert and have reliable information, (and not strike at random).

What I want to say clearly is that we consider everything that has happened since the martyrdom of our brother and so far to be part of the punishment. It is part of the punishment. It is our strong conviction. But I want to be even clearer, so that those in Lebanon who follow us understand us well, and so that Israel understands us. If we wanted to retaliate (merely) to boost the morale (of our troops and supporters), or for media hype (showing how tough we are), we would have done it from day one. I will be (more) precise. Quite frankly, we could have struck Israeli positions on the (occupied) Shebaa farms or anywhere along the border. Because as far as we are concerned, we no longer make any distinction. Formerly, we distinguished the Shebaa farms and the rest of the border, (limiting our operations to the Shebaa farms). Because the Shebaa farms are occupied Lebanese territory, and no one can deny our right to resist there. But after the (August 2019) Israeli attacks, we no longer differentiate between the Shebaa farms and the international border, (and we can retaliate wherever we want). We were done with that distinction since the last incident. Quite frankly, the Resistance fighters were quite capable of striking a military position with missiles, destroying its buildings & equipment, filming the attack and broadcasting the images in the media, shouting Allahu Akbar, and proclaiming that we had retaliated for the martyrdom of our brother. Of course, no soldiers would have been killed or injured (because Israel evacuated them or entrenched them in bunkers), and maybe even as they did for the Shebaa Farms show, they would have provided us with the ladder to get off our tree (and end this round while saving face); or, as they did for (our strike near the) Avivim (barracks on September 1, 2019), they would have brought in a helicopter, stretchers, false wounded soldiers, that’s all, and it would all be over. But that was not our goal at any time.

We do not run after media (hype), or after responses aimed at boosting morale, not at all. There is an equation we want to confirm. There is an equation we want to confirm. Today, I will be more clear than ever about this equation. Let Israel understand this: every time you kill one of our fighters, we will kill one of your soldiers. Period. This is the equation. If you kill one of us, we won’t (just) hit one of your positions, barracks, equipment, tanks, etc. Israel has all the money in the world. They would replace them easily. This is not what creates an equation of deterrence against Israel. Israel knows very well, even if this is the first time that I have expressed myself so clearly, through its observation of all our movements during the last weeks, that we are not seeking to destroy an (empty) vehicle: Israel has us offered vehicles (to strike), but we knew they were self-piloted, and we didn’t hit them. We could have hit them. Israel knows very well that we are not looking for (vain) military success to save face, it knows very well that we are looking to kill one of its soldiers. And he hid all his soldiers. He hid all his soldiers. They are holed up like rats. It is a point of strength of the Resistance (which has been manifesting itself) for weeks. This is not a point of weakness. It is not a failure. We act with precision, and want to hit a real target, not be baited by an illusory target or make (vain) media hype. The Resistance is serious in its desire to fulfill this mission (killing an Israeli soldier). Israel (ardently) hopes that we’ll strike anything, to end this (unsustainable) waiting, and to return to normal in northern occupied Palestine. But as far as we are concerned, we see things differently.

Even in what happened a few days ago (on August 26), when Israel fired phosphorus shells and flare shells, and unfortunately some shells hit houses, and targets of a farming association named Fruits & Vegetables Without Borders, thank God no one was injured or killed by all these strikes, and the damage was only material. We did not participate in any skirmishes (that day), we did not open fire (not even to retaliate). This is what the Israeli (enemy) would have wanted. He would have liked us to (shoot back) so that they’d be able to say that there were strikes or shots from each side, forest fires on each side, which would have settled things and reset the counters to zero. But we consider (that a futile skirmish) would have made the blood of our martyr vain, and weakened the equation of deterrence.

What Israel did a few days ago, and what it did a few weeks ago by touching, admittedly by mistake, a civilian home, all of this is duly noted, and Israel will pay the bill in full. As far as we are concerned, it is an absolute and irrevocable decision. It is only a matter of time, and depends only on the opportunities which will present themselves on the ground. And frankly, we’re in no rush. We are not eager to strike back today or tomorrow. And we do not consider it a sign of weakness if it takes time because no target that would allow us to achieve our goal is presented to us. Ultimately, you won’t be able to stay holed up in your holes forever. In a week or two, a month, two or three months, or more, you will have to go out. Time is not running out for us. No one is pressing us on the question of time. Eventually you’ll come out on the road, and we’ll hit you, thus confirming this equation. And any threats from Netanyahu, Gantz or Chief of Staff Kochavi and others will never stop us from achieving a goal shaped by thousands of martyrs.

Until an Israeli soldier is killed, terror will continue to reign in northern occupied Palestine, both among Israeli soldiers and settlers: Lebanese homes having been hit, strikes against civilians are likely. As happened last summer, Hezbollah’s deadly response will not lead to an escalation, because Israel is eager to end it, ready to conclude a truce at any cost. But whatever the case, Israel’s spokespersons, intellectually & morally colonized, will continue to unmask themselves through their lies, which perpetuate a myth of invincibility and impunity that the Israelis themselves no longer believe in since 2000 & 2006, but which remains significant in the East and the West, as the belief in Jewish supremacy and Arab backwardness are widespread.

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“Any amount counts, because a little money here and there, it’s like drops of water that can become rivers, seas or oceans…” Hassan Nasrallah