Hamas welcomes potential Lebanon ceasefire: ‘Hezbollah stood by Palestine’
The Cradle, November 26,2024 ─
The Hamas leader said Hezbollah made ‘great sacrifices’ and sent a ‘powerful message’ with its operations against Israel.
Senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan said on 25 November that his movement “welcomes” the potential ceasefire agreement in Lebanon, stressing that Hezbollah has made “great sacrifices” in standing by the Palestinian people.
“Any announcement of a ceasefire in Lebanon is welcomed, as Hezbollah has stood by our people and made great sacrifices. We, in the Axis of Resistance, trust one another and coordinate on every detail,” Hamdan told Al Mayadeen in an interview on Monday evening.
Hamdan highlighted that Hezbollah continues to fight until this moment and is making Israel “pay a price” by forcing its officials into shelters with its attacks.
The Hamas leader described Hezbollah’s massive rocket, missile, and drone attacks against the north and center of Israel on Sunday as a “glorious day of God” that sent a “powerful message.”
Hezbollah opened its front against Israel on 8 October 2023 – one day after Hamas launched Operation Al-Aqsa Flood.
The front was aimed at supporting the Palestinian resistance and people in Gaza.
The first months of the war last year saw Hezbollah meticulously target border settlements, nearby bases, and military sites – including surveillance bases and spy equipment. As Israel continued to escalate, Hezbollah’s operations gradually extended deeper north.
After the pager terror attacks in Lebanon and the assassination of Hezbollah’s secretary-general Hassan Nasrallah, and in the weeks that followed, Haifa and Tel Aviv entered the Lebanese resistance’s range of fire.
Last month, Hezbollah’s new leader, Naim Qassem, confirmed that Lebanon has entered a new stage of the war – signaling that the Lebanese resistance is now compelled to end the war against its people.
In a speech last week, Qassem praised Hezbollah for being among the few, alongside Yemen and the Iraqi resistance, who stood by the Palestinians and entered the war as the “world watched” tens of thousands be killed by Israel in Gaza.
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to approve a ceasefire deal during a security cabinet meeting on Tuesday afternoon. Beirut has expressed cautious optimism. The potential deal focuses on the implementation of UN Resolution 1701, which includes the deployment of thousands of Lebanese army troops and the withdrawal of invading Israeli forces from Lebanon.
It also requires Hezbollah to withdraw its forces beyond the Litani River. This is all meant to take place within 60 days of the announcement of the ceasefire.