Sheikh Naim Qassem: The resistance’s weapons are a pillar of Lebanon’s sovereignty, and disarming them is an attempt to impose the Zionist hegemonic project.

The Secretary-General of the Lebanese Hezbollah, Sheikh Naim Qassem, affirmed that calls to disarm the resistance represent a direct threat to the elements of Lebanese national power and an attempt to achieve goals that the Israeli occupation was unable to impose through war, stressing that the national priority should be to stop the Israeli aggression completely, withdraw the occupation forces from Lebanese territory, and consolidate the sovereignty of the Lebanese state.

Sheikh Qassem’s remarks came in a speech he delivered on the anniversary of the death of Imam Khomeini, in which he addressed the political and security developments in Lebanon and the region, in addition to his vision of the overall challenges facing the resistance axis in light of the escalation by the Israeli enemy and the continued American support for it.

Sheikh Naim Qassem stressed that proposals that make disarming the resistance an entry point to any settlement or political agreement represent an attempt to weaken Lebanon and strip it of the elements of deterrence that enabled it to confront Israeli attacks during the past decades.

He considered that the direct negotiations proposed under American auspices do not align with the requirements for protecting Lebanese sovereignty, noting that their results and contents reflect the American and Israeli vision aimed at imposing political and security conditions on Lebanon and subjecting it to equations that serve the interests of the occupation.

He stressed that the resistance sees the continuation of political and security pressures as an attempt to achieve through the political process what the occupation failed to achieve on the ground, emphasizing that any approach that goes beyond Lebanon’s right to defend itself or ignores the continued attacks of the Israeli enemy cannot be accepted.

Speaking about the situation on the ground, the Secretary-General of Hezbollah stressed that any talk of security or political arrangements must begin with a complete cessation of Israeli aggression against Lebanon, emphasizing that a ceasefire cannot be partial or limited to one area over another.

He said that what is required is an end to all forms of Israeli aggression by air, land and sea, the withdrawal of the occupation from Lebanese territory, enabling the Lebanese army to fully deploy in the border areas, in addition to the release of prisoners, the return of residents to their villages and the launch of the reconstruction process.

He also stressed that the issue of resistance should not be linked to the issue of stopping the aggression or the Israeli withdrawal, considering that organizing Lebanese internal affairs and determining national options remains an exclusive right of the Lebanese within the framework of the constitution and the national security strategy that they agree upon.

Sheikh Qassem reiterated that the resistance has not made any commitment not to respond to the Israeli enemy’s attacks, considering that the continuation of the bombing, targeting and occupation will keep the option of confrontation on the table.

He pointed out that the security of the settlements cannot be achieved while Lebanese villages continue to be targeted, civilian casualties continue, and property is destroyed, stressing that the resistance will continue to confront the attacks as long as the occupation exists and as long as the attacks continue.

On the Lebanese domestic front, Sheikh Naim Qassem called for strengthening national unity and unifying the internal position in the face of Israeli aggression, holding the Lebanese authorities responsible for working to address internal political divisions and launching a national dialogue that contributes to fortifying the home front.

He also called on Lebanese officials to put an end to the farce and humiliation of direct negotiations, considering that the strength of the Lebanese state is enhanced by the rallying of all national components around the option of sovereignty and independence and confronting external pressures.

In the other part of his speech, Sheikh Naim Qassem reviewed milestones in the life of Imam Khomeini and the role of the Islamic Revolution in Iran, describing him as “the reviver of religion and the destroyer of the arrogant tyrants,” and emphasizing that the Islamic Revolution was based on the principles of independence, justice, rejection of foreign hegemony, and support for the causes of oppressed peoples.

He pointed out that the Islamic Republic has faced wars, sieges, and multiple political and economic pressures over the decades, but it has managed to pers