Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem delivered a combative televised speech Friday, declaring that the terror group will ultimately force Israel out of all Lebanese territory and insisting that efforts to weaken Hezbollah have failed despite months of fighting and international pressure.

During his address, Qassem portrayed the current conflict as part of a broad campaign led by the United States, Israel, and their allies to dismantle Hezbollah and erase its influence within Lebanon.

“Today, in Lebanon, we are facing the most dangerous stage in our history and the largest joint American, Israeli, and international conspiracy, which threatens the future of our country and our children,” Qassem claimed. “The main objective of this plan is to uproot and completely eliminate the resistance and its popular base in Lebanon.”

Qassem argued that Israel and its partners turned to what he described as increasingly aggressive methods after failing to defeat Hezbollah militarily.

“To achieve this goal, the enemies first launched a criminal and unrestrained war, killing civilians and carrying out widespread destruction in order to bring the resistance to its knees,” Qassem charged. “In the next step, the United States and the Zionist regime, after witnessing changes in regional equations following developments in Syria, violated previous agreements in order to upset the balance of power in their favor.”

The Hezbollah chief maintained that attempts to destroy the organization have fallen short and vowed that his group will continue its struggle until Israel no longer maintains any presence on Lebanese soil.

“The project to destroy Hezbollah has failed, Israel’s plans have reached a dead end, and the final victory – meaning the complete and definitive expulsion of the occupiers from every last inch of Lebanese territory – is inevitable,” Qassem asserted. “Israel will leave the last inch of Lebanese soil. Be sure of that. Victory in every sense means the expulsion of Israel from our land, which will definitely be achieved. We are not people of surrender.”

His remarks came one day after President Donald Trump publicly expressed optimism that fighting throughout the region, including between Israel and Hezbollah, would soon come to an end.

Writing on Truth Social, Trump stated, “The United States is committed to PEACE, and we encourage everyone in the Middle East Region to maintain their commitment to allowing our negotiations to beautifully unfold. The Markets are loving what is happening with Oil Prices way down, and Stocks way up.”

Trump added: “We expect a complete Ceasefire on all fronts, including Lebanon, Hezbollah, and Israel. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”

The memorandum of understanding recently reached between the United States and Iran states that implementation of the agreement would bring about “the immediate and permanent termination” of hostilities, including the conflict in Lebanon, while also “ensuring the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Lebanon.”

The document further provides that, “The final deal will confirm the permanent termination of the war on all fronts, including in Lebanon, and other provisions of this paragraph.”

Later Friday, Israel and Hezbollah agreed to a ceasefire that took effect at 4:00 p.m., raising hopes that the latest round of violence could be contained.

Before the truce went into effect, U.S. officials reportedly informed Iran that Israel was not expected to broaden its military campaign in Lebanon despite a deadly attack in southern Lebanon in which four Israeli soldiers were killed by Hezbollah fire.

The fighting has continued to exact a heavy toll. Since the original Lebanon ceasefire went into effect in April, 23 Israeli soldiers and one civilian employee of the Defense Ministry have been killed during operations in southern Lebanon.

{Matzav.com}