Hezbollah urges Lebanese leaders not to 'show leniency' amid increasing Israeli attacks

Hezbollah, in a statement issued Wednesday, condemned in the strongest terms what it called "the horrific massacre perpetrated by the criminal Zionist enemy last night in the Ain al-Helweh camp in Sidon,” which resulted in the death of thirteen Palestinian refugees and a large number of wounded.

“The attack targeted a densely populated area filled with innocent civilians and children, in a yet another brutal act added to the enemy's dark record of crimes and genocide against Palestinians, Lebanese and the peoples of the region," Hezbollah said.

"This bloody crime and heinous aggression is an attack on Lebanon and its sovereignty, and a blatant violation of the ceasefire agreement and U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701, which the enemy continues to violate daily with the complicity and blatant partnership of the American administration, which supports and even plans such crimes and attacks against Lebanon and Palestine,” Hezbollah added.

It accordingly called on “the pillars of the Lebanese state” to “realize that showing any leniency, weakness or submission to this enemy will only increase its ferocity, brutality and aggression.”

“Merely responding with reactions that fall short of addressing the aggression will only lead to further attacks and massacres,” Hezbollah warned.

It added that "national duty requires taking a firm and unified stance in confronting the crimes of this enemy and deterring its aggression by all possible means, in addition to adhering to all elements of strength that Lebanon possesses, as they are the only guarantee for thwarting the enemy's plans and protecting Lebanon's sovereignty and security."