Hezbollah’s Hassan Nasrallah has called for Lebanese citizens to boycott US goods and products as “part of the battle” against President Donald Trump’s Middle East plan, the militia leader said in a speech on Sunday.

“Why are we not resorting to boycotting American products? This is part of the battle. If we do not want to boycott all goods, we choose some companies, and this is a form of confrontation,” Nasrallah said in his televised speech.

“The Israeli is afraid of death while the American’s weakness is his security and economy,” he added.

Iraqi-Lebanese columnist and writer Hussain Abdul-Hussain reacted to Nasrallah’s call for a boycott of US products by saying that his comments were out of touch with reality on the ground.

“This shows how dangerously delusional Iran and its militias are. Here, Hezbollah’s Nasrallah calls on Lebanon to boycott US products. He doesn’t understand that an economy in free fall, like Lebanon, cannot exert boycott/economic pressure on anyone, let alone America,” Abdul-Hussain tweeted.

Lebanon may not survive if its new government fails, Nasrallah warned during his speech, urging the country’s divided politicians not to obstruct the cabinet as it seeks to address an unprecedented economic and financial crisis.

Nasrallah also said there was no point in politicians trading blame over the causes of the crisis, after former prime minister Saad al-Hariri on Friday accused his rivals of pushing the country to near-collapse.

Banks are curtailing access to deposits, the Lebanese pound has slumped, inflation has spiked and firms are shedding jobs and slashing wages in a financial crisis. Hariri resigned last year amid mass demonstrations against the ruling class.

Supporting the government was a “national duty,” Nasrallah said. “This is not a party matter. If this government fails, it is not known whether a country will remain for someone to ride in on a white horse and form a new government.”

(With Reuters)