An unambiguous warning from a man who has never made an empty threat:
Full speech transcript:
Source: Hizbollah.org
Hizbullah Secretary General his eminence Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah stressed that “Hizbullah and the Islamic Resistance stand prepared to face any potential aggression on Lebanon, for Imad Moghnieh has left behind tens of thousands of very well trained fighters who are more than ready for martyrdom”.
His eminence added: “From July 2006 war until the martyrdom blood of Hajj Imad, let the entire world begin to write in this history to be the beginning of the fall of ‘Israel’.”
If Sheikh Ragheb Harb’s blood drove them (the “Israelis”) out of most of the Lebanese territory and Sayyed Abbas’ forced those out of the security zone except for Shibaa Farms, then the blood of martyr Imad Moghnieh will drive them out of existence God willing”.
At the funeral of the martyred leader Hajj Imad Moghnieh (otherwise known as Rodwan), Sayyed Nasrallah addressed the Zionists in a speech to mourners in Beirut’s southern suburb of Roueis at Lord of Martyrs Compound, saying: “You killed Hajj Imad outside our natural battleground. Our battleground with you is on the Lebanese territory as it has been; now you have overstepped the border.”
He further stressed that “faced with this killing, its timing, place and manner with which it was carried out, that if you (‘Israelis’) choose this type of open war, then let the world know we will accept it an open war”.
When Sayyed Nasrallah directed his talk to the ‘February 14’ team, he stressed that “Lebanon will never be ‘Israeli’ or American. It will never serve as a place or foothold for the Zionists. It will not be divided nor federalized. He who seeks ‘divorce’ and separation within Lebanon, let him leave to his masters in Washington and Tel Aviv.”
Lebanon will remain a country of national unity, coexistence and civil peace; it will remain a country of resistance, triumph and national dignity against the desire of political dwarves.”
The following is the text of the speech:
“For the spirit of the dear and beloved brother hajj Imad Moghnieh (Hajj Rodwan), and those of all the martyrs of the homeland and the nation we pray.
In the name of God, Most Gracious, Most Merciful, praise be to Allah, lord of the worlds, prayers and peace be upon our prophet Muhammad, his household and chosen companions, and all the prophets and messengers…
May peace, God’s mercy and blessings be upon you
Almighty God says: {Among the Believers are men who have been true to their covenant with God: of them some have completed their vow (to the extreme), and some (still) wait: but they have never changed (their determination) in the least} [33:23 SURAT THE CLANS, COALITION, COMBINED FORCES]
… The martyr leader Imad Moghnieh faithfully promised God and eagerly waited to be with God and died a martyr during the mourning period of the martyrdom of Abi Abdullah Hussein (PBUH) Lord of the martyrs…
Carrying his burial shroud, Hajj Imad was ever ready to sacrifice his own blood since his youth. He lived the years making victory as he sought martyrdom, until he finally arrived at his chosen goal … congratulations to him on this high divine medal…
Hajj Imad comes from an entire household of martyrdom and jihad …
At the outset, I would like to congratulate and pay condolences to the dear and beloved, honorable parents of Imad. I congratulate them for this divine alignment for your son’s martyrdom. Let the whole world know that this jihadist house gave all it had: Fuad, Jihad and now Imad …
To his struggling and sacrificing wife in jihad, his sons and daughters, his mujahideen relatives and loved ones, his resistance brothers and comrades in Lebanon and Palestine, and in every land where God has jihad and men, I give congratulations to you all for our dear and beloved brother’s receiving of this great divine medal. I also pay condolences for the loss of a dear and beloved brother, struggler and commander.
Hajj Imad Moghnieh is of the rank of leaders whose entire struggle, effort, work and life are all spent in secret charity with God almighty… these are God’s soldiers unknown on earth but known in the sky. They defend not themselves only, but the issues of the nation. They do not await praise because they are unknown. They do not defend themselves against lies or respond to unjust charges, because they do not see a presence for themselves outside the battle of jihad and sacrifice..
…We and the nation owe such souls the justice of disclosing to the world their glowing faces, pristine truths and grand offerings.
Today, martyr Hajj Imad has the right to be known by this nation and to be justly served by it for its own sake and not for his… so that the nation is inspired by his spirit, lesson and struggle …
…Hajj Rodwan today is in God’s grace, and all that is being said of him in praise or eulogy are part of the mortal world which means nothing to those reaching God’s grace…
This martyrdom, has been expected for 25 years, and has not surprised us, for we all belong to a school whose prophets, Imams and leaders are all martyrs…
…Today, with Hajj Imad’s martyrdom we are placed in our natural course as we were with the martyrdom of our leader and secretary-general Sayyed Abbas Moussawi, just as we were also with the sheikh of martyrs sheikh Ragheb Harb.. Because we are in a real bloody battle defending our nation, our holy places and our dignity in the face of all the greed and aggression posed by “Israel”, the United States as well as those who stand behind them.
Today, with time constraints, falling rain and loved ones waiting is not the time to serve Hajj Imad justice now…
…in the coming days we will only do a part of our duty, but standing before our martyred leader and his purified body and within earshot of the world that awaits Hizbullah’s position in this hour, I would like to emphasize several points…
First: the Zionists see in the martyrdom of hajj Imad a great achievement and we see a good omen of the decisive and imminent victory God willing..
…To back track a little through memory you will find thus was the case with sheikh Ragheb… upon his killing the resistance escalated and “Israel” withdrew from Beirut, the mountains and out of most Lebanese regions except the south…this was due to the resistance and his righteous blood, not international resolutions or interventions that always side with the Zionists …
…Such was the case with the martyr leader Sayyed Abbas Moussawi after whose martyrdom the resistance soared, leading to “Israel’s” humiliating defeat and withdrawal only a few years later in 2000…
…through his blood and the resistance which bore the banner and deeds of Sayyed Abbas Moussawi, and not by international resolutions and the international community…
……Today they killed the leader-brother hajj Imad Moghnieh. They think in killing him the resistance will collapse. They killed him in context with the war that did not end in July and continues on the political level till now.
Why did they fail in July war even though according to Winograd they were the strongest army in possession of superior arms and technology to anyone else in the region,? Simply because its army faced a valiant resistance, with courage and faith for 33 days…Because they were confronted by Imad Moghniyeh along with his brothers and pupils, who fought them courageously and intelligently. Thus, this ‘Israel’ lost its first war, governed according to historical laws and the promise of its founder, “Israel” will imminently fall and it will fall, God willing…
With the blessed blood of hajj Imad Moghnieh, the results will come to fruition, the blood of sheikh Ragheb, Sayyed Abbas’, Fathi Shokaki, Ahmad Yassin and that of the mujahideen leaders to sweep with its purity this cancerous usurper entity grown in the heart of the Arab and Islamic nation.
Second: Let all friends and those concerned be assured, and also let the enemy know that they committed a very big folly. As we stand before the body of martyr Imad and his brothers who know all the facts, I say to friends and foes: there is no weakness or imbalance in the body and ranks of the resistance.
Imad Moghnieh’s brothers will continue down his path of jihad, just as Sayyed Abbas’ blood did in the past, so will his. The ‘Israelis’ cannot conceive of the spiritual and emotional bond inspired by Sayyed Abbas’ within the resistance and Hizbullah. These people do not know because they belong to a different culture.
The blood of hajj Rodwan strengthens us, gives us more firmness and solidarity as we continue the road widening and making larger our horizons.
I would like to say to the foe before the friend that hajj Imad with his brothers accomplished his entire task. Today as he departs a martyr, he left behind only a small portion of his work to be completed…
…Since the end of the war in July, we started preparing for another day, because we know ‘Israel’ will assault Lebanon and launch a war against Lebanon and the region. We since the 14th of August when the displaced were returning to their homes, much of our organization was overseeing and organizing housing care and compensation duties; from the first day after the war, those who were fighting have been preparing for the war to come… What I promised in the past is not for the future. It has already been fulfilled at the hands of martyr Imad and his brothers.
Today, the resistance is fully prepared to confront any possible ‘Israeli’ war. Yesterday, I was speaking about rockets but today I will speak about fighters. Winograd said that a few thousand fighters confronted the strongest ‘Israeli’ army in the region for several weeks, something the enemy admits to…Today, I say to those who killed hajj Imad: in any coming war, not only one Imad Moghnieh will be waiting for you, not even several thousands of fighters… but tens of thousands of trained youths ready for martyrdom.
Third: To the enemy, because we are not treacherous, and to the friend, in seeking to be excused, I say the following: the Zionists have killed Hajj Imad Moghnieh in Damascus, all field and investigative reports confirm this matter. In dealing with this issue, the ‘Israelis’ only alluded more than declared responsibility for the assassination.
To them I say: you have slain hajj Imad outside the normal battleground. You used to fight us here on our land. Today, you went outside the border. I will quote something from the July 2006 war the first time I addressed you back then saying that if you wanted it to be an open war then let it be an open war, as I had promised the believers victory, because I have confidence in God, the believers and our people.
To the Zionists: confronted by this killing, its timing, place and the manner with which it was carried out, I say that if you (‘Israelis’) choose this type of open war, then so be it. Like all other people, we possess the sacred right to self-defense, and all that this right entails to defending our country will be carried out by our brothers and leaders God willing.
Fourth: On the 14th of February, the commemoration of martyr Hariri, we were hoping that this occasion would join the Lebanese. However, some wanted to turn this occasion into a party of curses.
In such event, I will not respond. I only underline that the Lebanon that we gave our dear leaders will never be ‘Israeli’ and will never be divided. He (MP Walid Jumblatt) who wants divorce (between the loyalty and the opposition) can go to his masters in Washington and Tel Aviv.
Lebanon will remain united and in spite of some dwarfs, Lebanon will continue to be a country for resistance. Despite the calls made for armies to fight wars on their behalf against the resistance, Lebanon will continue to be a country for civil peace and despite all attempts a country for resistance, victory and dignity.
In a few words and despite the attempts made by those calling for foreign armies to launch war on Lebanon and Syria, because they are too cowardly to fight their own war, and despite the ongoing seditious attempts day in day out… Lebanon will remain a country of unity, dignity, martyrdom, and forever deserves martyrs of such caliber as Abbas Musawi, Sheikh Ragheb Harb and Rafik Hariri.
Let us pray for our dear beloved and bid him farewell in the last-moments and renew our pledge to him…with our hands let us raise him to our shoulders proud of his leadership and martyrdom, making sure all our murderous enemies hear our voices despite the cold, and rain, that we will continue resistance until complete victory, God willing, no matter how the magnitude of the sacrifices.
May God bless you all, and raise our martyr to his heavens, along with the martyrs who preceded him and God willing our course will only be filled with victory festivities.
