A senior Hezbollah official says the Lebanese resistance movement is sure to emerge victorious from any war, citing the group’s achievements, including its recent successful flying of a drone over the Israeli-occupied territories.
Hezbollah is strong and is capable of winning any type of warfare, Sayyed Hashem Safieddine, head of the movement’s Executive Council, said on Saturday, Lebanon’s al-Manar television network reported.
The future belongs to the resistance as well as the equation that was established by Martyr Hassan al-Qais and the Hassan drone, the unmanned aerial vehicle, which was named after him, Safieddine said.
Hassan al-Qais was one of Hezbollah’s commanders who contributed hugely to advancing the movement’s military power before being martyred by the Israeli regime in 2015.
The Hezbollah official’s remarks came only a day after the group reported a successful flyover of the UAV inside the depths of the occupied territories and returning the aircraft safely to Lebanon. Before returning, the aircraft roamed over its "targeted area for 40 minutes on a reconnaissance mission, which extended along 70 kilometers," Hezbollah announced in a statement on Friday.
The Israeli military confirmed the flyover, saying an interceptor missile that was fired at the aircraft and warplanes that were scrambled failed to intercept it.
Elsewhere in his remarks, the Hezbollah official asserted that the movement’s capabilities would serve to stun the occupying regime.
Lebanon fought off two Israeli wars in 2000 and 2006. On both occasions, battleground contribution by Hezbollah proved an indispensable asset, forcing the Israeli military into a retreat.
Late last year, the ALMA Research Center, an Israeli organization, said Hezbollah was in possession of some 2,000 unmanned aerial vehicles compared to 2006 when the group had less than 50, warning that a “swarm” of such UAVs can severely damage the Israeli regime’s defenses.
Safieddine also pointed to the sanctions that the United States has imposed on Lebanon over Hezbollah’s significant influence in the Lebanese political and military spheres.
“If the Americans had sought to allay the Israeli enemy’s concerns [regarding Hezbollah] by bringing Lebanon under pressure and financial and economic blockade, [they should know that] our drone caused further distress among them (the Israelis) yesterday,” he said.
Safieddine, meanwhile, warned those who were ingratiating themselves to the US in the country against trusting “the American camp” too much, adding, “Whoever challenges Hezbollah will be broken and suffer defeat.”