Nasrallah: Halutz’ resignation filled me with joy
Hizbullah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah responds to IDF chief’s resignation in interview with al-Manar network. ‘Amir Peretz will follow, then Ehud Olmert. Anyone who doesn’t resign will be dismissed,’ Nasrallah declares
“The moment I heard of Halutz’ resignation I was filled with joy. His resignation was anticipated. (Defense Minister) Amir Peretz will follow, as will (Prime Minister) Ehud Olmert. Whoever does not resign, will be dismissed,” Nasrallah declared.
“I remembered the youths, the women and children, and all those whose houses were destroyed, all those who sacrificed their lives for the victory. What is happening now proves it, and I want to address the true victors – the members of the opposition, the fallen, the wounded, the hostages and their families, and all involved in the sacrifice,” Nasrallah said.
“I want to tell them that every day of the future will prove how much your victory was historic and strategic,” he added.
Nasrallah commented on the Israeli media’s response to Halutz’ resignation. “I say that Halutz’ resignation is an earthquake. The analyst’s commentary, the enemy’s newspapers and experts cannot be separated from the resignation itself. All the Israeli media says Halutz had to do it because he anticipated the conclusions of the Winograd committee and had to take responsibility.”
The interviewer challenged Nasrallah, asking whether the move may only constitute an admission of responsibility in a democratic country. Nasrallah replied: “This is a racist and enemy entity, but some of its components have positive elements which help it exist, and which we would be please to have in our own nation.”
Nasrallah's political analysis
Nasrallah gave his own analysis of Israel’s political system: “There is a crisis of confidence which is unprecedented since 1948. The Israeli public does not have faith in the army and does not have faith in the leadership, and the surveys indicate as much.
"Today, the army is trying to restore its image after the war. There is a problem in their strategic vision and it needs to be reconstructed. The situation is even worse than we can imagine. I would assess that next in line is Amir Peretz.”
According to Nasrallah’s claims, Peretz won’t be the last to quit. “In my opinion, in the end Olmert will have to resign too, or he will be dismissed. But it won’t end there. Another result of the war is the shake-up the leading party got – Kadima. Olmert only has 14 percent of the public’s support. Kadima would be thrashed in elections if they were to take place today.”
In response to a question on whether time was working in Israel’s favor or against it, Nasrallah said: “Look at the enemy’s resignation letter (Halutz). Peres said this is a war for life or death, and Halutz’ move speaks of a deep crisis in the Israeli army. The Israeli army is the backbone of the state, and when it is battered everything is shaken up.
“Every country has an army, but in Israel, it is the army which has a country,” he added. In his answers, Nasrallah attempted to demonstrate his expertise regarding the IDF.
Hizbullah expresses pleasure
A few hours after Halutz announced his resignation, the Hizbullah organization expressed their satisfaction over the event.
The group claimed that his resignation constituted "unequivocal proof" of Hizbullah’s victory over the IDF in the second war in Lebanon. Hizbullah’s television network al-Manar opened its broadcast that day with an announcement of Halutz’ resignation, attributing it to “Israel's failure in the last war.”
Hizbullah's first response to Halutz' resignation was made by parliamentarian Hassan Fadlallah, when he said that the “Olmert-Peretz-Halutz trio, which led the aggression against Lebanon, is headed for total collapse, and America’s aid can’t save it.”
Fadlallah did not miss the opportunity to celebrate the event and signal to his political rivals in Lebanon, i.e., Fuad Siniora’s government, that their fate would be similar.
Halutz’ resignation was, according to Fadlallah, “the natural result of his army’s defeat in Lebanon. The results of the offensive war are still unfolding in the enemy’s arena, and they will continue for some time.”
