Skip to main content

Gantz calls Hezbollah chief Nasrallah 'Lebanon’s biggest problem'

On the backdrop of the explosion in Beirut, Defense Minister Benny Gantz warned that Hezbollah has the habit of stocking ammunition in homes of civilians.
Shiite Muslims Hezbollah militants stand to attention as hundreds of people gather in a huge hall waiting to watch a televised speech by Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of the Shiite Muslim Lebanese Hezbollah militant group on February 22, 2008, in Beirut's southern suburb, ten days after the assassination of Hezbollah commander Imad Mughnieh in a bomb attack in Damascus. Nasrallah's televised speech marked the killing of Mughnieh and the 1992 assassination of its former leader Abbas Mussawi in an Israeli heli

Defense Minister Benny Gantz made an unexpected statement this morning about Lebanon. Addressing the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee Aug. 10, Gantz said, “While [Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan] Nasrallah is our greatest enemy to the north, he is Lebanon’s biggest problem from within Lebanon. We see the tragedy that happened in Lebanon. … Just think about what would happen if that were repeated with Iranian weapons in Lebanese villages.” Gantz went further, warning, “We are dealing with enemies who are operating and storing weapons in a civilian environment. If we have no choice but to fight, it might have difficult implications.”

Gantz was appointed to his position in May, but his address today was his first briefing to the committee as defense minister as well as the first address by a defense minister to the committee since November. Illustrating the volatile situation in Lebanon, Gantz said that there are homes in the neighboring country with both guest and missile rooms. "As a security network, we are fighting enemies that keep weapons and operate in civilian surroundings. If we don’t have a choice but to fight, it will have dire consequences,” he added.

Access the Middle East news and analysis you can trust

Join our community of Middle East readers to experience all of Al-Monitor, including 24/7 news, analyses, memos, reports and newsletters.

Subscribe

Only $100 per year.