BEIRUT — A definitive speech by Sheikh Naeem Qasim, the Secretary-General of Hezbollah, late on Friday summed up in one phrase: Remove the idea of disarming the resistance from your dictionary! 

Sheikh Naeem Qasim explained this to those who fool themselves by deliberately ignoring that the weapons of the resistance must not be a subject to media debate or political outbidding!

What the Secretary-General of Hezbollah emphasised is that Hezbollah’s legitimate weapons are in the hands of a wise leadership that will not relinquish the sacrifices of our martyred ancestors, especially after the number of Israeli violations of the ceasefire agreement has exceeded 3,000, resulting in hundreds of martyrs and injuries.

Even when the Israeli enemy launched an airstrike on the southern suburbs of Beirut in late March, Morgan Ortagus, the Deputy U.S. Special Envoy to West Asia, explicitly defended the brutal aggression as “legitimate self-defence”!

Further, what the Hezbollah Secretary-General highlighted was that the hostile behaviour and rhetoric of Lebanon’s pro–Israel team is a clear betrayal.

Sheikh Qasim’s speech came in response to an unprecedented, systematic campaign targeting the resistance’s legitimate weapons, falsely portraying them as the root of Lebanon’s rampant crises. 

This is part of a battle for awareness aimed at weakening Lebanon and transforming it into a country under the mercy of American tutelage.

The Secretary-General insisted that Hezbollah’s weapons are not a luxury, nor a means of seizing power, but rather are meant to protect all Lebanese and preserve their dignity in a time of humiliation and subjugation. 

Sheikh Qasim underscored that Lebanon’s finest martyrs have risen to shield this righteous resistance, and immense sacrifices have been made to perpetuate it.

Undeniably, the natural norm of battles for any resistance movement is sometimes an immense victory and sometimes a painful experience. However, this does not invalidate the legitimacy of weapons nor eliminate the vital need for resistance.

Sheikh Qassem’s message is that whoever truly seeks Lebanon’s interests should come to the dialogue table to discuss a comprehensive national security strategy that identifies friendly and hostile states, and examines a unified vision to protect Lebanon’s sovereignty from all threats.

Last March, State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce stated, “As part of the cessation of hostilities agreement, the Lebanese government bears responsibility for disarming Hezbollah. We expect the Lebanese Armed Forces to disarm these terrorists to prevent further hostilities.”

In parallel, Washington is also exploiting international institutions to pressure Lebanon. It has repeatedly hinted that aid to Lebanon is contingent on the disarmament of Hezbollah and even normalization with Israel. 

For his part, Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea has threatened that he will not participate in a national dialogue on the resistance’s weapons, as he believes this is a “waste of time.” Rather, Geagea believes that disarmament must be immediate and implemented within six months.

This systematic campaign targeting the Lebanese resistance focuses on two main axes: questioning the resistance’s narrative and the legitimacy of its existence, and challenging the legitimacy of its weapons.

Further, it is a deliberate disregard for the fact that the resistance emerged as a natural and legitimate response to the Israeli occupation of Lebanese territory, a fundamental right guaranteed by international law and humanitarian conventions.