Hezbollah said early Tuesday it had joined the war against Israel in response to what it described as prolonged Israeli “aggression” against Lebanon, hours after Lebanon’s prime minister announced a ban on the group’s military activity from the country’s territory.
In a statement issued overnight, Hezbollah said that for 15 months “the aggression against Lebanon continued, including killing and destruction,” and that it had repeatedly warned such actions “cannot continue without a response.”
The group said the latest overnight barrage toward Israel was carried out solely by Iran and that it was not involved in that specific attack.
“It is not possible to justify prolonged aggression with excuses,” Hezbollah said. “Confrontation is a legitimate right, and what the Islamic Resistance did was a response to aggression, primarily for national reasons and to ensure security and stability for our people and our region throughout Lebanon. The response of the Islamic Resistance against a military base in Israel is a defensive act and a legitimate right.”
The statement came hours after Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam declared that Hezbollah would be barred from conducting military operations from Lebanese territory.
Lebanese Justice Minister Adel Nassar told Al-Jazeera that the decision was published despite objections from ministers affiliated with Hezbollah, who did not leave the cabinet meeting. Ministers from the Shiite Amal movement voted in favor of the decision, he said.
“Hezbollah’s move to launch rockets toward Israel is a grave mistake and endangers the people,” Nassar said. “The Lebanese government emphasized that any military activity by Hezbollah no longer receives any type of cover. The gray area is over, and anyone who contributes to Hezbollah’s military activity will be placing himself outside the law.”
IDF Chief of Staff, Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, said following an assessment with senior commanders in the north that Israel would intensify its response.
“We will end the campaign with not only Iran being struck, but Hezbollah also suffering a very severe blow,” Zamir said.
“Our main effort is Iran. We are operating with force and striking the terror regime, in unprecedented cooperation with the United States military,” he said. “After Hezbollah opened fire, I instructed that we act with force against Hezbollah as well. The Israel Defense Forces planned and are prepared to operate in multiple arenas simultaneously.”
Zamir also criticized the Lebanese government and military for not disarming Hezbollah.
“The Lebanese government and army were warned repeatedly in recent times to disarm Hezbollah — they did not act,” he said. “Therefore, we will know how to defend ourselves by ourselves. We will end the campaign when not only Iran is struck but Hezbollah also suffers a very severe blow.”
He added that Israel would continue to insist that Hezbollah be disarmed and that the military “will not end the campaign before the threat from Lebanon is removed.”