The words of Hashim Safi al-Din, widely recognized as second in command of Lebanese Hezbollah and the potential successor to Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah, matter, and they carry even greater weight when he is speaking to a mouthpiece of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. In a recent interview with Tasnim News, Safi al-Din communicated a carefully worded message to Israel expressing Hezbollah’s readiness to strike back against Israel if it is attacked on Lebanese soil and its disinterest in opening a front against Israel from Syria.

• June 13: Hashim Safi al-Din, the secretary of Hezbollah’s Executive Council, in an exclusive interview with Tasnim News, a mouthpiece of the IRGC, commented on Israel’s unilateral withdrawal from southern Lebanon in 2000 and current affairs:
  • “Back in the year 2000, we just saw resistance in Lebanon and Palestine, but today, a complete, solid, and powerful axis has been shaped all over the Arab world and the Islamic world … What counts is the stance and source of the power of this axis, which is the Islamic Republic of Iran. The solid bedrock of the Iranian nation, leadership, Cabinet, and the guard resisted with all its values, as evident in the strength of the ‘axis of resistance’”
  • Commenting on a recent war game carried out by Hezbollah’s Radwan special operations unit, Safi al-Din said: “Israel thought that by preventing the transfer of arms to Lebanon, it could defeat ‘the resistance’ and Hezbollah, but on the other hand, it was more or less aware of the qualitative and quantitative strengths of ‘the resistance,’ along with the will, resolve, intentions, and aims of ‘the resistance.’ Hezbollah Secretary General Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah has on many occasions declared our missiles would reach Tel Aviv and the Radwan Unit would enter al-Jalil,” Arabic for Galilee, if the Israelis “commit any mistakes, so Israel knows. Now, what is the story behind this war game? Well, I must say that this war game was held on the occasion of the feast of the resistance and liberation. It also conveyed the message that it hardly matters if the Radwan Unit enters al-Jalil or is entangled in a great struggle. We are always prepared. This is our serious message … It is only natural that they get nervous and fearful. This is one of our objectives, not only in war games but in general … The more they panic, the better they realize their unstable circumstances. They expressed concerns about the war game, which makes us content. They said they would be destabilized, which is exactly what we want.”
  • Commenting on oil and gas exploration in Lebanese territorial waters, Safi al-Din said: “If there is oil or gas, we will not allow Israel to abuse our resources. These resources belong to Lebanon. We will not intervene in the process from the very beginning. We will allow things to take their natural course. Companies that will engage in exploration and extraction will continue their activities under direction from the government of Lebanon. We will let the Lebanese government do all these things and merely monitor the circumstances. However, should anything threaten the exploitation of these resources, we will be prepared … Fundamentally, Hezbollah was formed to protect our inalienable rights, including national sovereignty with regard to oil, gas, and other resources. We protect Lebanese national sovereignty with all our power.”
  • Turning to the issue of the Golan Heights, Safi al-Din said: “The Golan is Syrian land, and it is the Syrian leadership that decides what happens in Golan … In other words, we do not intend to open new fronts, but we will always be at the service of the rights of Arabs, Palestinians, Syrians, the Lebanese, and any other place in the world. This is a routine and natural matter. As a resistance movement, we are always on the side of nations that have taken the path of resistance and steadfastness, be it in Palestine, in the Golan, or any other region.”