Israeli army spokesman lauds Bassil's 'manly' stance on Hamas statement

Israeli army Arabic-language spokesman Avichay Adraee has hailed Free Patriotic Movement chief Jebran Bassil’s rejection of a Hamas statement that announced the establishment in Lebanon of a division called al-Aqsa Flood Vanguards and called on Palestinian youths to join it.

“Honestly, this is a manly stance that is rare in the current State of Lebanon amid the presence of the State of Iran Land. A reminder: Hamas Land is a mere extension of what you called a national resistance. How is it possible, Jebran? How can you make a lie and believe it? Which national resistance are you talking about?” Adraee said in a post on the X platform.

“Hezbollah and Hamas are two faces of the same coin and the proof is what is currently happening in the South,” Adraee added.

Bassil has totally rejected Hamas’ statement, warning that “any armed action using Lebanese territory as a launchpad is an attack on national sovereignty.”

“Lebanon has rights and its ‘national resistance’ against Israel empowers it to defend itself, but the creation of a Hamas Land in the South weakens it,” Bassil said in a post on X.

Hamas meanwhile said that its statement was misinterpreted and that the new division is a popular and not a military organization, after the announcement sparked a storm of outrage in Lebanon.