Hezbollah threatens military escalation against Israel amid rising tensions

By Wassim Saifuldine

BEIRUT (AA) – Lebanese group Hezbollah threatened military escalation against Israel on Wednesday if Tel Aviv mounted its airstrikes in Lebanon.

''Until now, confrontations have been limited,” Hezbollah deputy chief Naim Qassem said in a speech at an event in Beirut’s southern neighborhood.

“However, we will escalate if the enemy moves to a higher level” in its attacks, he added.

The Hezbollah leader criticized the West’s double standards in dealing with the Israeli war on the Gaza Strip.

"Western diplomacy aims to disable our strength in disturbing Israel's security, but it does not work to stop the war on Gaza,” he added.

Tension has flared along the border between Lebanon and Israel amid intermittent exchanges of fire between Israeli forces and Hezbollah, in the deadliest clashes since the two sides fought a full-scale war in 2006.

The border tension comes amid an Israeli military offensive in the Gaza Strip that has killed more than 29,313 people following a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas on Oct. 7 last year.

*Writing by Mohammad Sio