Thursday, July 03, 2008
During the course of the news conference, Nasrallah also made his clearest indication yet that his party is willing to discuss the issue of its weapons within the context of a national defense strategy. "We are always ready to discuss the defense strategy. We are not afraid of discussion," Nasrallah said. "Anyone afraid of discussion is weak and has done something wrong. We have a comprehensive defense strategy and we are ready to discuss it at all times." Nasrallah added that the 2006 Memorandum of Understanding between the Free Patriotic Movement and Hizbullah had formally "concretized" Lebanon's defense strategy for the first time. Discussing the expected prisoner exchange with Israel, Nasrallah said he would not "set an exact date" for the swap. "The sooner it takes place the better," he added. "I expect that in a week or two it will be implemented ... July 15 is the most probable, a bit before or a bit after," he said, adding that "If I specify a date, the Israelis will only change it." Under the deal, which was approved by the Israeli cabinet on Sunday, Israel will release five Lebanese prisoners, including Samir Qontar, and hand over the remains of Hizbullah members in exchange for two captured Israeli soldiers and the bodies of Israeli troops slain in Lebanon during the 2006 war. The two Israeli soldiers, Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev, were captured by Hizbullah in a deadly cross-border raid on July 12, 2006. Israel responded to the border incident by launching a devastating 34-day war on Lebanon. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert told the Israeli cabinet on Sunday that the two Israeli solders were dead, but Nasrallah refused to give any additional information about their fate, calling the Israeli reports on the matter "speculation ... not based on anything tangible." "Israel has no clue as to whether the soldiers are alive," Nasrallah added. Hizbullah has always said that it seized the two soldiers to use them to negotiate a prisoner exchange. "We have completed the whole mission," Nasrallah said, in reference to the group's aim of securing the release of all Lebanese held by Israel. Nasrallah also said the resistance would hand over in a day or two a thorough report on the fate of Israeli airman Ron Arad, who has been missing since he ejected from his plane during a raid in South Lebanon in 1986. Hizbullah had reached "absolute conclusions" about what happened to him after four years of investigation, Nasrallah said, without elaborating. The report will be handed over to a United Nations-appointed German mediator who will arrive in Lebanon within two days, Nasrallah said. Nasrallah described in detail the "hard and long negotiations" over the prisoner exchange, stressing that the talks were conducted through the German mediator appointed by the UN secretary general and that therefore "the mediation is international, not German as the media has reported." Nasrallah said that as part of the negotiations, Hizbullah sought information on the fate of four Iranian diplomats who were abducted by Christian militiamen during Israel's 1982 invasion. He added that the German mediator would soon receive a report from Israel on their fate. The Iranian Embassy in Beirut said in a statement released on Wednesday that Tehran believes that the four are alive and being held in Israeli prisons. Nasrallah emphasized that the prisoner exchange was a "victory" that could be claimed by all Lebanese. "I congratulate all Lebanese on this achievement and I hope that all the Lebanese consider it their achievement," Nasrallah said, adding that "We will deal with it just as we dealt with the 2000 victory and we will not use this new achievement for internal ends." The Hizbullah leader also said he hoped the Lebanese "appreciate" that if the deal is carried out, "Lebanon will be the first Arab country in the Arab-Israeli struggle to close the detainee file." He also said he hoped that the return of the bodies would inspire a sense of solidarity among Lebanese. "Our national and ethical responsibility is to maintain what these martyrs sacrificed and died for, and their funerals should be a national, unified event, a chance for the Lebanese to meet again," Nasrallah said. "I personally announce Hizbullah's absolute openness to any political meeting under any title and in any context if it helps in uniting Lebanon, preserving civil peace and overcoming the previous phase in Lebanon," he said, in reference to armed clashes between opposition and pro-government gunmen in May in which at least 65 people were killed "I urge all popular powers to distance themselves from any provocation so that we can make good and civilized use of the sacred blood in bridging the gaps between the Lebanese," the Hizbullah leader said. Turning to the issue of celebratory gunfire, Nasrallah said that "this is a very dangerous matter" since "people are falling victim to this kind of gunfire." "We can no longer tolerate this. Anyone who fires a gun to celebrate is firing that gun at me, at my head, at my heart and my turban," Nasrallah said. Asked about the issue of the Israeli-occupied Shebaa Farms and Kfar Shuba Hills, Nasrallah said his party welcomed efforts to liberate the Israeli-occupied territories through negotiations. He added, however, that Israel's withdrawal from all Lebanese territory "would not be a complete liberation" if the land were placed under UN control, and not under Lebanese sovereignty. Turning to the region, Nasrallah said he does not think that Israel will attack Iran's nuclear facilities, calling the Jewish state "too weak to carry out such a major step." "Israel is not capable of attacking Iran if the United States does not approve of the move," he added. ----------------------------------------------- The Daily Star, with agencies British terror stigma 'is an honor' BEIRUT: Hizbullah secretary general Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said Wednesday that Britain's decision to blacklist the Lebanese resistance group's military wing as a terrorist ogranization was an "honor" but questioned the timing of the move. "Each time there is such a decision by the colonialists, we consider it a medal, an honor which attests that we are on the right path for our people," Nasrallah said in a press conference. "But the timing is suspect because it coincides with a prisoner swap," he said, referring to an agreement that will involve Israel releasing five Lebanese and the remains of Hizbullah members in exchange for two Israeli soldiers captured in a cross-border raid two years ago - or their bodies. Britain moved to ban the entire military wing of the resistance movement, adding it to its blacklist of terrorist groups, making it a criminal offense to belong to, raise funds or encourage support for the group's military wing. The Interior Ministry said it took the action because Hizbullah's military branch was supporting Palestinian and Iraqi militants. London has already banned Hizbullah's "external security organization," which it considers the group's "terrorist wing." Nasrallah said the timing of the latest British ban was aimed at damaging "the human and civilized image that the exchange of prisoners gives to the resistance." The move was also "not a surprise ... since it comes from a founding state of the Zionist entity," he said, referring to the British-mandated Palestine where Israel was established in 1948. - AFP
BEIRUT: Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah confirmed on Wednesday that his group had agreed to a UN-mediated deal to exchange prisoners with Israel, adding that the swap was expected to take place within the next two weeks. "I officially announce that we accept the agreement," he told a news conference held by video-link from a secure location.
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