Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah. (Screengrab)

Hezbollah’s Nasrallah warns wider Mideast conflict is ‘realistic possibility’

Reuters

Published: 03 November ,2023: 05:24 PM GST Updated: 03 November ,2023: 08:01 PM GST

Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, speaking for the first time since the Israel-Hamas war erupted, warned on Friday that a wider conflict in the Middle East was a realistic possibility.

A formidable military force backed by Iran, Hezbollah has been engaging Israeli forces along the Lebanon-Israel border in the deadliest escalation since it fought a war with Israel in 2006.

Hezbollah have been escalating day by day, forcing Israel to keep its forces near the Lebanese border instead of the Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank, Nasrallah said in a televised address, speaking for the first time since the Israel-Hamas war erupted on October 7.

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“What’s happening on the border might seem modest but is very important.”

He also blamed the United States for the war in Gaza and the high civilian death toll and said a de-escalation in the besieged enclave was vital to prevent regional war.

“You, the Americans, can stop the aggression against Gaza because it is your aggression. Whoever wants to prevent a regional war, and I am talking to the Americans, must quickly halt the aggression on Gaza,” Nasrallah said.

He added Hezbollah did not fear the US naval firepower Washington has assembled in the region since the crisis erupted.

Nasrallah said that further escalation along the Lebanese border between Israel and his group - a Hamas ally - was contingent on what happened in the Gaza Strip.

Nasrallah’s remarks coincided with a visit to Israel by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who said the US had been clear that it is determined there should not be a second or third front in the conflict.

Blinken was speaking to reporters in Tel Aviv following meetings with Israeli leaders, adding that Washington is committed to deterring aggression from any party.

He also appealed to Israel to take steps to protect civilians in Gaza as its forces kept up their bombardment of the Palestinian enclave and the death toll among residents soared.

The Israeli military said its troops were fighting Hamas militants in close-quarter combat in the ruined streets after encircling Gaza City in their bid to wipe out the group that controls the small, densely populated territory.

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